Courage of the Stars
by Takada Saiko
Summary: If there's one trait Baelfire shares with his late father, it's that he's willing to do anything to get back to his family, even dabble in some of the darkest of spells and bending the laws of magic. AU to Quiet Minds. Swanfire. Rumbelle.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**.

Everything looked familiar even if it was all wrong. Granny's stood just off Main Street, but there was trash littering the front yard and the roof looked like it might cave in at any time. The inn behind it had been completely obliterated. The windows were blown out on the pet shelter and a glance down the street a ways showed the clock tower was crumbling, the hands on the clock stuck at the exact time that Henry and Emma had crossed over the townline to escape. Gusts of wind picked the littered trash up, simply redistributing it down the otherwise abandoned streets and the skies overhead rumbled dangerously. It was like everyone had fled some great storm that had descended upon the little town in Maine, leaving only the destruction that followed in behind them.

There was one man left, though, and he felt the need to find someone welling up within him. Several someones, if he were honest with himself and he pushed through what was left of Storybrooke, calling out names as he went. No one answered. No one was left to answer.

It reminded him of what he'd seen in the Enchanted Forest when he'd been searching for a way to get to Emma and Henry. Bae knew that, somewhere deep in the recesses of his mind, but the thoughts didn't make sense. He wasn't sure what could have done this to the town and left him behind. As he looked around, he saw that he was truly, utterly alone.

His father's pawn shop still stood just down from Granny's. Of course it did. The world could crash down around it - and had - but it remained standing. The windows were cracked and the door was hanging open, slightly off its hinges like someone had forced their way in. He pushed it carefully, avoiding the glass that was littered through the opening. "Papa?" he called, his voice lost to the empty and damaged little shop.

"Dad?" came a voice in return and Bae knew it well. He darted for the back of the shop, not caring to avoid the shattered glass tops that had once been the viewing tables or the various bits and pieces that were scattered across the broken floor. Henry was in the back and in that moment he was certain he hadn't seen him in far too long.

"Hey, buddy," he greeted as he pushed back the curtain only to find the back of the shop empty, the exit just past his father's work table ajar as the front door had been. He opened it up and caught sight of the little yellow bug that he'd stolen, once upon a long time ago and that Emma, in turn, had stolen from him. It was on its way out of town, putting towards that line that was marked in bright orange and Bae felt fear rising up in him. They couldn't leave. If they left, they'd never remember any of them. That's how the curse worked. "Emma!" he called, trying to catch up, but the voice behind him made him stop.

"You'll never make it."

Bae whirled around, finding Henry standing at the door. He wasn't smiling, but instead looked at him with an expression he knew all too well. It was the same look he'd seen in the mirror after he'd fallen through the portal, his hand slipping from his papa's when the dagger had meant more to him than his own son. "Henry?"

"You let us go," his son said evenly, his voice cold. "You abandoned us, just like your dad did to you and his did to him. You were going to break the cycle, but you didn't."

"No, Henry, I'm trying to get back to you," Bae answered in a rush, memories crushing in around him and flying away again just as quickly so that he couldn't quite pick them apart. All he knew was that he needed to get to his son. Even as he reached out, though, Henry started to fade, that accusing look cutting through him sharper than any knife ever could.

Baelfire's eyes snapped open and he found himself looking straight up at what might have been an ornate marble ceiling once. There were cracks in it now, caused by a curse that had ripped everyone from the Enchanted Forest. A curse his father had used to get to him. The reversal of that curse had stolen Henry away, though, and that was what Bae had been trying so desperately to piece together amidst his nightmare.

He managed to disentangle himself from the sheets in a bed that probably hadn't been used in centuries - if ever - and pressed bare feet down to the cold wood, making his way down the hall of the castle, his mind spinning to put together facts. Henry and Emma were gone, trapped in the Land Without Magic with no memories of anything that had taken place in Storybrooke. Bae, along with everyone else, had been put back down by the curse's reversal into the land of his birth. Well, almost everyone else. His father hadn't come through with him. Rumplestiltskin had died to make sure that they remained safe. He'd died so that Bae could find his happy ending.

Instead all Bae had found was a lonely ache left behind. His son and his love were gone and the father that he'd just managed to find again had died for him. His papa had been right: there truly was no pain worse than regret. There were no happy endings in sight.

No, he reminded himself firmly, that's why they were there. He and Belle had split ways from David and Mary Margaret to journey to the Dark Castle and find a way to bring his father back. Belle seemed determined that the fact that the dagger was missing meant that there was a way and they'd stumbled almost immediately on a very helpful candle that had shown them the way to a key that would open the Vault of the Dark One. It was their best option and they'd made pans to leave at dawn for the vault.

"Do you feel like this is all coming too easily?" Belle asked almost immediately as he padded his way into the Great Hall. She was seated in one of two overstuffed chairs that they'd dragged into the room before splitting ways - so he'd thought - to go to bed, but by the looks of the fire she'd never left.

Bae quirked an eyebrow and took a seat across from her. It was freezing outside and the spells mean to keep the cold out of his father's castle had long since worn down, leaving it just as drafty as any of the other abandoned castles that littered the Enchanted Forest after the Dark Curse hit. "And you're complaining about this?"

Belle shifted a little, flipping the page of the book she was reading. There were stacks of others that she'd apparently made her way through, with bits of paper marking places that she'd taken notes in them. She'd been busy, without a doubt, and Bae couldn't help but wonder why she was trying to find a reason _not_ to pursue this.

"No," she said at last, "I just keep trying to imagine what Rumple would say if he was here. He'd tell us that everything comes with a price, and I'm wondering what that could be."

She had a point, as much as he didn't want to admit it. Bae had been so laser-focused on finding a way to get back to Emma and Henry that he'd ignored anything that was inconvenient. The larger the goal, the steeper the price, but that was certainly inconvenient when all he could do was think about how quickly he needed to get back to his son. He'd be a fool to say that he'd pay anything, because even he knew that wasn't true. What would the point of returning to his loved ones be if it immediately cost him his life? Some prices were simply unmanageable, and with those words from Belle's mouth he could almost hear his father in them.

"Well," Bae said reasonably, "we traveled here and we're looking. That's something."

Belle laughed at him. "Something, perhaps."

He sighed. "No, I get it. I get what you're saying, but if it's a chance… If it can bring my dad back so that we can get back to Storybrooke, then we should take that chance. What if the price is in taking the gamble?"

"May I… ask you a very personal question?"

Bae stopped, finding her clear blue eyes fixated on him and he couldn't shake the feeling that the woman could look into his very soul. Not for the first time he could almost feel the depth of Belle's love for the man that they'd been speaking about. It was strange. He'd been young, certainly, but he'd never felt that from his mother when his parents had been together. Milah had been spiteful and she'd been angry. Her words were cutting and did more damage than any of the blows that somehow landed on Rumplestiltskin's shoulders in the little village in which Bae had been a child. Belle, though, was something entirely different. He hadn't spent a great deal of time around them together, but he had seen the influence that she'd made on his father and it couldn't be denied. No, that woman had somehow pulled back the many layers of evil that Rumplestiltskin had been wrapped in to show a glimmer of Bae's papa beneath, and for that, he nodded the go ahead. He thought he could manage a bit of honesty.

"I know, and of course understand, that you want to get back to Emma and Henry, but… even if your father couldn't help you get to them, would you still want to bring him back?"

Okay, maybe not _that_ honest. Bae felt a coldness spread through his chest and he knew the question was loaded with pitfalls and dangers of all kinds. Not that Belle meant for it to be, he didn't think, but it was just the nature of discussing his and his father's relationship. His papa had been his entire life as a little boy, and even more so when his mom had left - abandoned - them. That's why the change had been so difficult when Rumplestiltskin had set out on his quest to find a way to save his son as himself, but had returned as a demon. Bae hadn't been willing to fully believe he'd lost his father to it, though, until he felt his fingers loosen around his own smaller wrist and the portal had pulled in him through, leaving the creature that had stolen his father's face and his father's life behind.

His first trip to Neverland had left him bitter and calloused to a great degree. Baelfire hadn't _wanted_ to remember the good moments of his childhood - and there had been many - lest his heart continue to break for the man he'd known. Instead, he walled himself off, determined to forget his papa and make a new life for himself. He had done both and then the very same man - wearing the face of his papa, not the demon - had come barging back into his life with something that might have been an apology if looked at at just the right angle and all the wrong words. Bae had held tightly to his bitterness that afternoon and he'd shut him out until the idea of losing him was forcefully shoved in his face. Then, and only then, had he opened himself up to hoping again. It hadn't lasted, but he'd hoped.

The return to Neverland to find Henry had changed everything for both of them. Rumplestiltskin had thought his son was dead and his son had found out that his father wasn't really gone. He was just buried under layers and layers of hurt and regret and pain. They talked - really talked - for the first time in centuries on the deck of the _Jolly Roger _and the hope had returned to stay. They'd promised each other to try, and Bae had fully intended to live by that. He knew his father would try his damndest too, because even if he'd been on the receiving end of the one deal the Dark One had broken, Rumplestiltskin was well known to keep his deals these days.

"Bae?" Belle whispered and the elder man blinked, finding tears sticking to his eyelashes. "I'm sorry, I didn't meant to-"

"It's fine," he answered quickly and was surprised to find his voice rough. "Yes. Yes, I'd want him back regardless. I didn't…" Bae pulled in a deep, steadying breath. His emotions were always so conflicted when it came to his papa. Sometimes he felt guilty for not focusing on his own son more and then he'd feel guilty for not thinking about his father. That emotion was digging in deep at the moment and he closed his eyes to speak. "We didn't get to say everything that needed to be said. He needs to know that I love him too. I can't just let him go without him knowing."

His father's True Love offered him the warmest smile he thought he'd ever seen and she reached across the space between them, her small hand touching his. "We'll get him back," she promised, "and you can tell him."

Bae nodded, trying for a smile of his own. Putting his family back together might come at a steep price, but there were very few he wasn't willing to pay.

* * *

Belle hadn't slept. Granted, she hadn't slept a lot since the curse's reversal had put them back into the Enchanted Forest. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Rumple's face and those dark, so very human eyes of his turning to her, telling her that she made him stronger. How strong, though, had cut deeper than any physical wound could have. She'd felt her heart begin to crack a little when he'd spoken because somehow she'd known that this was his way of saying goodbye.

Then the dagger had gone straight through Pan - as small as he was there was hardly any doubt that it would - and Belle had known the instant that it had pierced her love as well. She'd known when he died because her heart shattered in her chest, the feeling dragging her to the ground as she cried.

She'd spent their night in the Dark Castle researching anything that she could find on the Dark One. She knew that if anyone had books on his curse, it would have been Rumplestiltskin. Many of the books that had been littered throughout his home in Storybrooke, in his shop, and even some that had made their way into the library had been returned to the tower he'd built just for her and while she certainly hadn't had time to look through them all, she'd at least had a pretty good idea where to start.

Something tugged at her mind when it came to their overly helpful candle that had somehow come alive in the library tower just for them. She'd never come across him in her time there and she was about certain that she'd lit every candle that there was to light, especially ones that were in the library. That didn't necessarily mean he was lying, of course, but it did make her question, so she'd set out to try to find anything that she could about the Dark One, the vault, and what it all meant.

The book that the key had been in held precious little, but there were a few tomes scattered about that she'd found and made note of. While many Dark Ones' names were lost to history there had been a bit about bubbling darkness from the depths of the earth and the tortuous screams of those left behind by their curse. None of it seemed well documented, but almost as if it had been lost to legend. In the end, she hadn't found anything that kept them from leaving out first thing that next morning, Lumiere tucked away in a satchel to keep him out of the snow. He'd given them detailed instructions that they were to make their way down the mountain away from ocean on the other side - and Maleficent's fortress - and past the village at the bottom. Some three or so hours later, if their pace was steady, they'd reach the edge of Sherwood Forest, the candle had told them, and from there they were to wind around, finding a stream - surely frozen over at this time of the year - and follow it along yet another hour at a good pace, then divate once they found the forked tree. Bae had had a snide remark or two about that one, but they were eagerly assured that they'd know it when they saw it.

"Lightning hit it," Belle said as she looked up at the charred, dead lump of wood split nearly in two. Her feet were sore and she was about half frozen. The trip down the mountain had taken longer than she remembered, though they hadn't had the luxury of Rumple's carriage that they had used when traveling before the curse. The snow hid the ice beneath it, and on the steeper parts of the path it made it very slick. Neither she or Bae had managed to avoid slamming down hard on their backside at least once each.

They'd left out just before dawn and the sun seemed to be setting by the time they finally found the tree. Bae shot it a distasteful look and stalked right past it. "This way, right?"

"It should be," Belle answered, shuffling through the snow drifts to keep up. While their journey had started off with plenty of chatter it had died down the further they walked. If she'd been tired before, she'd moved beyond it now into a state of drifting. Her thought had floated in and around, though the one constant through them was Rumple. "You know," she said as they worked their way through the foliage, "every since it happened I haven't been able to stop thinking about Rumple's sacrifice."

Bae turned towards her, the torch that they'd brought with them lighting their path and he gave her a questioning look.

"I mean how he died to save everyone in Storybrooke," she clarified.

"You know that wasn't it," Bae countered, his dark eyes meeting her own bright ones and she noticed as she had so many times since they'd set out on their journey together just how much like his father's they really were. "He died to save us. His family."

Belle knew that, but part of her wanted to believe that he'd grown to care about their little town too. He'd always told her that he was no hero like in one of her books, that he did everything for a reason and a price, but giving his life for them certainly hadn't been a selfish move. He'd broken past what he joked about as being a nasty habit of self preservation and he'd given everything to make sure they were safe. "At least he died a hero," she answered. _Even if he'd never believe that he could be, _she added silently.

"You surprised he had it in him?"

The question, especially after their conversation the night before, caught Belle a little off her guard, but she supposed that was to be expected. Bae loved his father and wanted him back, but that didn't mean that all of the years and years of hurt were suddenly washed away. There were questions and there were answers yet to be had, and she was certain that was part of what drove the elder man. "Course not," she answered truthfully and turned to him. "Were you?"

"I don't know," he said with a sideways look at her. His voice was guarded, not quite as open as it had been when they'd spoken about him in front of the fire, but it was thoughtful, like he was still working through so many of the emotions. "I mean, my papa was never the most selfless guy. I know he wished he hadn't let me go through that portal. I know how sorry he was, but now that I have a son of my own I can't imagine ever doing what he did."

Belle paused for a breath of a moment and looked at him. Conflict echoed in his eyes and she found herself wanting more than anything to help him do away with it. This man loved his father, loved what he had been as well as what he could be - would be - for him now. Rumple had chosen a better path and Belle had faith in him that he could continue to choose a better path as long as they both stood by his side. Bae needed to be strong for him as much as she did. "He regretted what happened with you so much," she said, hoping that somehow her words could convey even a fraction of what she knew that Rumple had felt. "He was willing to do anything to get back to you."

Bae chuckled, the sound tight and forced. "Well, that's one thing about him I can relate to. I'd do anything to get back to Henry."

He didn't say it, but Belle liked to think she was pretty good at reading between the lines, and if Bae was anything like his father, fear made him more prone to lashing out, even at those that he loved. He was worried that this wouldn't work, or if it did, that Rumplestiltskin still couldn't get him back to Emma and Henry. He was afraid that he'd never see them again and that he'd failed them. He didn't say it, but he didn't have to. She could see it in his expression and the way he carried himself. If he was anything like Rumple - and he was, more than he would probably ever care to admit it - it was time to change the subject.

"It's uh… It's getting colder." The snows had started to fall again, covering the ground in a layer of white. At first she'd thought that was the cause of it, but as they drew closer they could feel the unnatural cold of something dark and evil lurking near. Belle steeled herself. It was the Vault of the Dark One, not a grove of fairies. As they drew nearer it became clear that they were close and she saw the clearing, just as Lumiere had described to them. "Look."

The trees surrounded the clearing in nearly a perfect circle, but they hadn't blocked the snowfall. A lone stump sat just at the entrance and Bae moved to set the candle down on it and lit it. The flames leapt up and Lumiere appeared. "You found it!"

"Now what?" Bae demanded, patience apparently wearing thin.

Lumiere gave instructions to look at the center of the clearing for the door into the vault. Belle and Baelfire exchanged a look and their conversation from the night before passed silently between them before Bae's lips thinned out and he started in first. He walked to the center and sank down, digging in the snow as Belle came up from behind. Even as he called her name she could see the markings he was uncovering and again she thought that this all seemed much too easy.

"They key must go in the middle," she murmured as she watched him pull it from his jacket pocket. They looked at it and it looked like it would be a perfect fit. Though just because something fit didn't always mean that one should follow through with action. Knives fit well enough into electric sockets back in the Land Without Magic, afterall.

"You sure about this?" Bae called and they both turned to look at the irritable candle.

"I spent two hundred years in Rumplestiltskin's library witnessing more dark magic and sorcery than any living creature has ever seen!" Lumiere snapped and Belle stopped. That was it, the piece of the puzzle that had simply been missing. It was a damn big piece too.

"I'm sorry, how long did you say you were there?" she called out as Bae turned to continue studying the entrance.

"Two hundred years. At least!"

She quirked an eyebrow in a disbelieving look and reached out to grab Bae's attention. "He's lying."

"What?" her love's son mumbled and she stood. The snow was coming down harder now, but she could see clearer than she had for the last day in which this trip had been planned. Something about the candle's story hadn't set well with her, but Bae had been determined that he needed to get back _now_. She didn't blame him, of course, because she couldn't possibly wait a moment longer than she had to for Rumplestiltskin to come back to her, but they had to be smart. They had to be as clever as the clever man she loved, and she knew they had it in them to be.

"Rumple built that library for me not long before the curse," she said by way of explanation as she moved to confront the lying table decoration. "It's been there barely thirty years."

She could almost feel Bae's rage take over as he lashed out, demanding to know who their supposed guide really was and leveled some fairly attainable threats at him, including simply leaving him there. Lumiere's eyes widened and he didn't seem to consider for a moment that they wouldn't do it.

The story came tumbling out that Lumiere had been cursed by Zelena, not Rumple, and that the witch had told him that he must lure them to this place. She wanted them to bring Rumple back, but certainly not for the reasons that Belle or Bae had. "She wants you to bring back the Dark One so she can control him with his dagger."

Belle felt the world shift. She was certain that Rumple had never told her _everything_ about his dagger, but once he'd finally opened up to her about Bae, that conversation had led to mean others. The dagger had been one. The Kris dagger was what he called it and it held within it part of his curse. He was linked to it, mind, body, and soul, and whoever owned that dagger controlled the Dark One. It was how he'd become the Dark One and should anyone ever take it, he'd said, they could either control him or kill him with it.

She turned towards Bae, the cold settling much deeper now. "We need to leave."

"Belle, that means we _can_ bring him back," Baelfire argued. "Does it matter who got us here?"

While Bae looked a great deal like his father at a certain angle, Belle hadn't thought he sounded a great deal like him until now. It wasn't too much of a surprise, really, with how he'd tried for so long to be anything but Rumplestiltskin's son, but in that moment she could hear Rumple. All he wanted was to get back to his family and he didn't care what he had to do to get to that point. The difference was that his father weighed the cost carefully. He may not have paid it himself, but he always knew what that cost was going to be. Bae was blowing right past it.

"Rumple didn't sacrifice his life for good so that he could return to be a slave to evil," she tried to reason with him.

"My father is the king of loopholes," Bae said as he started pulling his gloves from his hands. "I'm sure he'll figure out a way to deal with her."

"But what if he can't? Think about what she could do if the Dark One was under her control." She watched him carefully as he turned the key over in his hand. His mind, clever as it was, had to have been coming up with a thousand different scenarios just as hers was. He knew, possibly better than Belle herself, just what that dagger could make his father do. He'd come so far, given so much to be better than what his curse made him, and his son was risking all of that. What good was it to bring him back if he wasn't himself? "We'll find another way," she promised, reaching out to him.

He opened his mouth to argue with her and stopped, the words cut short as he snapped his jaw closed again. There was such pain in his eyes in that moment, such hurt, that Belle felt her heart break for him. She understood, but in that moment they needed to be strong. Not just for themselves or for Rumple, but for all of those that Zelena could harm if she got ahold of him.

Bae loosed a long breath. "It's too easy," he whispered.

"I think so."

"Papa always said things come with a price. A price equal to what you're getting."

She gripped his jacket and offered him a strained smile. "I promise you, Bae. There has to be another way. We'll find it."

"Okay," he breathed at last, slipping his gloves back on and tucking the key back into his jacket.

"Okay?"

"Yeah. We can always come back."

The words were forced, but she'd take them. Even as she watched him trudge straight past a sputtering Lumiere and up the path they'd come down, as she followed and snuffed out the candle to hide their path from their enemy, she couldn't help but feel that they'd made the best decision they could. They might never know the terrors they'd avoided, but they could find something better. And Belle knew there was something better to be found.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I just realized that I forgot to put the notes on here when I first uploaded the prologue. This is what happens when I try to do fifteen things all at once. This has seriously been my entire day.

So this story was actually born out of a set of conversations with Robin4 over a movie (I can't tell you which one or I'll spoil it). I'd mentioned that I was going to go see it and she told me that plot bunnies would take hold. Well, they did, and here we are. I'm blaming her for this (in a good way) because she's let me bounce enough ideas off of her and helped me rework them into something that is turning out to be a very fun story to write. So major thanks to Robin for this one.

As always, let me know what you think.

Next time - Chapter One: The Prince of Loopholes. Bae and Belle uncover a spell in his father's castle that may help him get back to his family. All of his family.


	2. The Prince of Loopholes

**Chapter One: The Prince of Loopholes**

They'd wasted more time than he was comfortable with by the time they finally returned to the Dark Castle. The snows had begun to fall in earnest just as they were leaving and they'd had to take up shelter in an inn that could hardly be considered one - Bae had spent his fair share of nights and twenty-minute-stop-offs in enough rat holes not to be too picky, but that particular place had left him feeling less rested than walking through the snow all night would have - and it was past nightfall again by the time they returned to the castle.

"I'm wondering if we should take these books to Mary Margaret's castle," Belle mused as she took a step back and looked up towards the shelves that reached towards the high ceiling.

Bae followed her gaze. "_All_ of them?"

"I think it's a safe bet to say we can leave the romance novels, but even this history books may have something useful in them. Rumple always did hide things in very strange places."

"You really think he would had a backup plan for this?"

Belle quirked an eyebrow at him and he couldn't help but think he'd said something stupid. "Aren't you the one that said he was the king of loopholes?"

"I'm also the one that said I was a little surprised that he sacrificed himself." Bae shrugged, running a hand over the spines of the books, the rough material causing a tingling sensation in his fingertips as he did. "But yeah, he was a planner, if nothing else. Even for the worst case."

"Perhaps all of them," Belle mused softly and returned to looking. "Zelena is sure to know that we didn't open the vault sooner or later. She won't just let it stand."

"Makes me wonder why she didn't open it."

"Maybe the person has to be related? Some sort of… oh, what did Rumple call it?"

"Blood magic."

"Yes, that's it."

Bae stopped, dark eyes coming to rest on the book that his fingers lingered on. It probably wasn't any worse of a place to start than the others so he plucked it from its place and opened it. The text was in another language, scrawled in letters and symbols that he didn't understand, but next to it in neat, small handwriting was his father's own script. He hadn't seen it in many, many years, but he'd recognize it anywhere. There had been many nights after Rumplestiltskin had finished spinning for the evening that he and Bae would sit at the little table next to the fireplace and he would work with his son on learning his letters. He'd taught Bae to read and write in a village that probably had a literacy rate of two people, and that was after Bae had learned. Even his mother had only been able to read at a very basic level, but his papa had made sure that Baelfire knew each and every letter and how to string them together. They'd had a whopping three books in the little hovel, but Bae had read them cover to cover a thousand times by the time he'd left. He'd have known his father's notes anywhere.

"What'd you find?" Belle asked, glancing down from the ladder she was climbing.

"Don't know yet." He flipped through the thick pages, finding bits and pieces his father had noted on. Rumplestiltskin had obviously known the language, even if his son didn't, and had scrawled half thoughts and sometimes less next to certain portions. None of it made a great deal of sense, but as Belle descended back down the ladder and peered over onto the pages she made a small sound that caught his attention. "What? Do you know it?"

"Not the language, but I know what kind of book it is. It's a book of spells." She reached for it and Bae gave it over, allowing the bookworm access to work her own brand of magic on it. She continued to hum to herself in intervals, flipping pages over and looking a bit longingly at the writing. "Very complicated spells, from what I know of them," she said after several long moments, looking back up at him. "I never learned any magic from Rumple, but I did manage to sneak a few glances here and there while he worked. This writing, from what I've been able to uncover, tends to be very old and very powerful magic. The spells can only be cast by a sorcerer of truly great talent."

"Can you make anything out of his notes?"

"I'd imagine they're in reference to the Dark Curse." She pointed at the notes as she read them out loud. "Useful. Not useful. Impossible. Would turn everyone into cows… while funny, still useless."

She giggled at the last one and Bae found himself smiling. "Cows? Some ancient sorcerer had a sense of humour."

"Perhaps so, but I'm afraid it won't be very useful to us if neither one of us can read it." She handed the book back to him and turned back to her ladder, pausing. "Are you willing to use magic to bring him back?"

"I'm not sure what else we'd use," he answered truthfully. "I mean, people don't just rise from the dead, even if they are the Dark One."

"Dark Ones don't just sacrifice their lives for people that they love," Belle countered. "Or love at all, I'd wager."

"You think my dad was that different from his predecessors?"

"I do. I think he was different from anyone you or I would ever meet. Rumplestiltskin was truly… unique."

Bae sighed, feeling the weight of of the situation settle heavy on his shoulders. It'd been foolish to think that the first book he might grab would be the one they needed, but somewhere deep down he'd hoped his father really had prepared for this in one way or another, and perhaps he'd known Bae would come looking for a way to bring him back. Baelfire snorted at the idea almost as soon as it'd crossed his mind. They'd talked a bit on the boat ride back from Neverland, but why would his papa have put his faith in his son that Bae would love him enough to look for him after this?

The split guilt started working its way through him again as he glanced back down at the book, ready to snap it closed and keep looking, but the symbols seemed to shift, blurring in and out before finally coming back into focus in something that he could read. He stared at it, head tilted to the side and trying to decide if he'd lost his mind or if he were dreaming and didn't realize it.

"Belle?"

"Hmm?"

"Take a look at this and tell me I'm not crazy."

She didn't bother to come down this time as she looked, squinting at the poorly lit pages and stepped down a couple rungs. "Is that…?"

"I don't know. It just changed."

"Where'd you find that book, Bae?"

"On the shelf. Here," he said, pointing to the empty place in the middle of a shelf.

"Why?"

"I don't know. Why not?"

"Something must have made you want to pull it out."

He wasn't sure what she was getting at and he shrugged. "I just chose this one."

She was on the floor again, looking closely. "These really are very interesting spells. Look here. Teleportation spells, healing spells, transfiguration spells… It has a bit of everything."

Bae skimmed over the pages until he found something truly interesting. It was a spell, one that looked very intricate and lengthy, and the product of it seemed impossible. His father had scribbled several notes next to it, but they were scratched out as if in a fit of rage and a line had been drawn through the entire page of explanation. "I thought time travel was impossible," he murmured, eyes still looking over the information.

"I don't think this is time travel, per se," Belle answered, pointing to one of the bottom paragraphs that had been half smudged by Rumplestiltskin's fit. "It looks like this spell sends the person's consciousness back, not their bodies. I suppose that's how it gets around breaking the law of magic."

"Same side effects, though. You can still royally screw with history."

"That would be if you could survive it. Look at this, Bae. There are so many notes of price and warnings attached to it…."

"What do you think he was even looking at this for?" Bae mused, trying to smudge out some of the markings to get a better view of the writing.

Belle snorted. "What do you think? If he thought he could use this to go back and make sure he didn't let go of you… He would have done it in a heartbeat."

Bae blinked at her. "Even if that meant he'd never find you?"

His father's True Love offered him a smile that wasn't quite sad. "Even if. I don't think you know quite how much he loved you, Bae."

"Sometimes I wonder," he admitted softly, finally making some headway. "Regina would be able to decipher more of this, I bet."

"You're thinking it's a viable option?"

"Maybe."

"Though not likely."

Bae felt his blood run cold and he snapped the book shut and handed it back behind him to Belle, both of them looking to the entrance of the library where a woman that had spoken and was making her way up the stairs. Zelena, he realized. This was the Wicked Witch of the West and she was in his father's home. Well, it shouldn't be that surprising, he supposed, with the way that she'd set them up to take the fall on opening up the vault. She was smiling toothily at them, lips painted an obnoxious colour of pink that stood out terribly against her green skin. She wore all black, including the hat perched up on her ginger hair and she laughed at their expressions. "Oh, I'm sorry. Am I interrupting something?"

Baelfire took a step in front of Belle and she in turn took a step back. There was one exit from the tower unless you counted the three or more story drop that jumping from the window would bring with it. Bae pulled his sword from its sheath. It was useless, he knew, but it felt better than simply standing there and letting her kill them. "What do you want?"

"So to the point. Your father would have been better for conversation," the witch said.

"My father isn't here. Looks like you're stuck with me."

"Pity. I really had planned turning one in for the other. Tell me, how did this little thing convince you not to turn that key? I really did think that was going to work. It should have. Desperation is such a powerful motivation, after all."

"That was the price," Belle gasped from behind. "A life for a life."

"You think you're so smart," Zelena growled, her face crushed into a scowl for a moment and she took a step forward, forcing them to retreat one in return. "I have ways of making you do it, you know. Then I'll have his dagger and with it, I'll have the Dark One. No one will be able to stop me."

"We're not opening that vault for you," Bae swore, inching back and saying lowly, "Belle, the teleportation spell. It can get us to Regina's castle."

"_What_?" she gasped. "I can't-"

"Pop said you cast the protection spell around Storybrooke while we were gone."

"That doesn't mean I'm suddenly a magician!"

Bae backed up another step, raising his sword as Zelena approached, chuckling at their back and forth. "Silly children. You're not going anywhere."

Belle swallowed hard and opened the book. Bae could almost feel her focusing on the words behind him as he took a swipe at Zelena and she caught the blade between her hands, holding it steadily there and grinning at him like some sort of monster out of a nightmare. Funny, he thought, but he was pretty sure he'd had a nightmare about the Wicked Witch as a teenager when he'd come back and seen the damn movie. It was definitely not a way to welcome him back to the Land Without Magic. "Belle!"

"It's not working!" she cried.

The witch still had a firm grip on his sword and Bae took advantage of that, sidestepping and using the momentum to shove her back. It didn't cut her, but it did give them some space for the half a second it would take her to cross it again. "You're not doing it right!" he growled, pulling the book from the younger woman. She let it go, startled, and he couldn't have explained how he'd known, but he pressed his hand against the page and looked back at Zelena as an unnatural wind began to whip around the library. It was like the bean, he realized, and all he had to do was focus on where he wanted to go. He'd seen the castle more times in Henry's book than the brief glimpse he'd caught of it in the distance before he and Belle had split ways with the others, but he focused on it, finding it in his mind's eye. In the very last moment before Zelena lunged at them, he grabbed Belle's hand and they vanished, the witch's howls barely audible behind them.

* * *

Camping with the Charmings. That was what her life had become. It was a neverending camping trip that included a pregnant Snow, a doting Charming, and a crazy elder sister that Regina hadn't even known that she had. She really hated camping, even when it was done in her own home.

She had spent as much time as she dared rebuilding her wards and her protections. It didn't help that even though Snow _said_ she trusted her, she felt the need to hover every time that Regina lifted her hand to brace the spell that had been tattered and shredded by the green-skinned witch. Snow had never been one to simply sit and watch either. No, she only thought she was being quiet. Regina could remember in the weeks leading up to her wedding to Leopold when Snow would think she was being oh-so-discreet in watching Cora practice her magic. She had been about as discreet as a wraith trapped in Gold's pawn shop. Sadly, the years hadn't done anything to diminish that trait in her.

"What does that one do?"

Regina sighed, lowering her hands and the glow that had engulfed them faded as she turned to glare at her step-daughter. "I'm having to replace every ward that I'd built with blood magic. If Zelena really is Cora's daughter than I don't want to wake up to her standing over my bed at night. Do you?"

"Of course not, I just don't understand-"

"Well keep it to yourself or I'll make sure to put one up that steals your voice every time you enter the room so that I can work in peace," the Evil Queen snapped, startling the younger woman. If Snow had been ready to say anything in return, though, she never got the chance, as Regina felt a sharp jolt accompany one of the wards she hadn't gotten to yet shatter entirely.

"What happened?" Snow asked hesitantly.

"Someone just teleported into the castle."

Both women moved quickly, Snow following just behind. Regina rounded the corner, magic already building around her incase she needed to lob a fireball at someone, but instead they saw two familiar figures in a heap in the center of the castle's Great Hall. They were coughing and sputtering, their clothes showing signs of scorch marks made by powerful magic in untrained hands. If they'd wanted to go any further or had any less will power to get them there, the spell would have entirely rebounded and likely burned them alive. As it was, there probably a gaping hole wherever they'd come from and they looked perfectly miserable where they now sat.

"Neal! Belle!" Snow gasped, scurrying over to them and her hands were flying, checking for injuries and trying to get them to respond.

"We're alright," Belle managed, still choking against the smoke. "Bae?"

"Yeah… good," he managed, pulling himself to his knees.

Regina watched them, her lips quirking up with peeked interest. One of them had cast a spell. This could get very interesting.

"Where have you been?" Snow asked, still fussing over them both. She dusted off Belle's jacket and turned to do the same for Neal but he squirmed away in the last moment, hands held outward and the glove of his right hand was burnt nearly straight through. Well that _was_ interesting. Rumple's son, the man who had hated magic so much as a boy, had manage to cast a spell. The queen's brown eyes shifted over to the book that he was picking up from the floor.

"What's that?" she asked and both Belle and Neal turned to her as if noticing for the first time that she was there. Regina tilted her chin up a bit and waited.

"Regina," Belle breathed, turning a distrustful look on the elder woman. Not that the queen blamed her. She _had_ locked her up for nearly thirty and purposefully mislead her love to believe that she'd committed suicide to keep him from looking for her. Well, time does march on. It was about time she got over that.

"Yes?" the queen asked with fake cheer.

"We found it in my dad's library," Neal said for her, pulling the pages apart so that it rested in the palm of his less burnt hand so that she would have a clear view of it. "We're looking for a way to bring him back and found this."

"Back?" Snow echoed. "Neal, he's dead. We've been over this…"

"I know, but just hear us out," he argued, motioning for Regina to take the book - not a burn mark on it - and continued speaking as she did, looking over the spell that he'd indicated. "If we could get him back - resurrect him or whatever - he could get us back to the Land Without Magic. He could-"

"Neal," the dark haired princess chided and it sounded like something that they must have discussed before.

"Resurrection's impossible," Regina cut her off. "As is time travel. That's what this looks like. There are rules to magic, Neal. They're there for a reason."

"But this gets around them," he argued. "Look."

She sighed, turning her gaze back to the page that was littered with Rumple's notes. Pieces of the spell were partially obscured by angry markings that were a telltale sign of the Dark One's temper when things didn't work out as he'd hoped. It could be smudged away with some care - and it looked like Neal had already begun that process - but the depth of the magic leaping up from the page sent chills down Regina's spine. The price was steep and there were many conditions to casting something like this. The caster could not be the one to travel. The traveler was limited to their own timeline as their consciousness would - if the complicated spell was cast correctly - be put into that body, more or less replacing who they were at the time. Interestingly enough one of Rumplestiltskin's more coherent notes toyed with the idea that the consciousnesses might eventually begin to war with one another, possibly melding together and possibly pushing one entirely out. Either way, the person would lose vital pieces of their life that made them who they were when they were sent back if they so much as took half a step off that path, and it would be impossible not to. No one would dare travel the exact same path if they knew what would happen if they did. There'd be no point in going otherwise. "You can't come back from this," Regina breathed at last, coming to the conclusion that Rumple must have.

"It doesn't matter," Neal said firmly. "If I do it correctly then there won't _be_ anything to come back to. This timeline will be rewritten into something better."

"So you think because you managed to trigger one of your father's blood-magic based spells that you're suddenly a sorcerer with the ability to cast something like _this_?" Regina demanded. "And I thought Rumple was arrogant."

"I wouldn't cast it. You would."

She stared at him like he'd lost his mind. "You can't be serious."

"He's not," Snow assured her, turning a glare on Neal. "You're not. You can't be. You're talking about obliterating our entire present. Charming and I just found out I'm pregnant. I can't-"

"So you'll have the kid in another timeline," Neal snapped. "Then you'll have _both_ of your children. Don't you _want_ to see Emma again?"

"Of course I do."

"You don't really seem like you do."

"Bae," Belle admonished softly, reaching out to Snow as the princess stared in utter shock at him. "There are many variables to consider." She turned a quick look on Neal, a conversation passing between them without words involved. "Regina, will you take a look at it and see if it's even an option?"

"Yes," Regina answered before she knew she'd even given herself permission to. "I'll take a look at it."

"Thank you," Belle said kindly and she squeezed Snow's arm. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine."

"Of course," Snow breathed and smiled. "Why do we get the both of you settled into a set of rooms? Maybe a change of clothes?"

"And a hot bath would be lovely," Belle agreed, but Regina couldn't help shake the feeling that she had no intention of letting the raven haired princess get in her way of getting to Rumplestiltskin. There was a sort of determination in her eyes and a cleverness in her words and in that moment Regina thought that she might feel something akin to respect forming for Rumple's little bookworm.

* * *

Belle had no intention of letting Snow talk them out of a way to save Rumple. While she was very fond of the dark haired princess, she'd noticed a trend in her behavior when it came to Rumplestiltskin. She never seemed as interested in helping him as she was in seeking his help. As good as Snow was at her core there was a bit of a selfish streak in her. It wasn't malicious or intentional, but it was there, and Belle refused to let the other woman's fear stop them.

When she'd been a little girl her mother had often told her to have the courage of the stars. Being a curious child, she'd asked her what she meant by it. Her mother had smiled her gentle smile and kissed her forehead. "The stars know that they cannot last forever, Belle," she'd told her daughter, "but they burn bright. They burn so bright, that their light continues on even after they themselves have died away."

Now they needed to find the same kind of courage. Belle understood the fear that Snow felt and in many ways she shared it. The people that they were as they stood right there and then would cease to exist from the world and a different version would replace them. Perhaps many different versions. It could be a better life or it could be much darker and more dangerous than they faced even now. There was no way to know, but Regina had taken nearly five days, secluded away in her private study, to look over the spell again and again before she'd agreed that she could do it. That was how the daughter of a landed knight that had fallen in love with the Dark One found herself standing in the Evil Queen's castle with her True Love's son about to undergo a complicated and dangerous spell.

"What happens if it's not cast correctly?" Belle asked softly.

Regina sighed, looking over the words that must have been etched into her brain by now. "Then Neal's consciousness will just sort of… drift. Something like a Sleeping Curse, I suppose."

"But without anyone to wake me up," Neal murmured.

"This is dark magic, but it's not a curse. If we lose you, there's no bringing you back. If you want to decide against this, the time is now," Regina said firmly.

"No. I have to get back to my family."

"And you're certain we won't shatter the worlds with this?" Belle pressed. She'd done some research of her own and had found nothing outside of the book of spells itself to even mention this one. As far as she had found, everything that could be known about this spell was in this book.

"No, it bypasses the law of magic that prohibits time travel."

Belle found herself smiling at this, glancing back at an increasingly nervous Baelfire. "I suppose if your father is the king of loopholes, this makes you the prince, doesn't it?"

Despite himself, Bae returned the smile. "Guess so. Anything either of you want me to say to… well, you?"

"I'm sure I'll just be very happy to meet you," Belle answered him, but Regina took a step closer.

"I won't believe you when you tell me. Rumple might. He's seen the book, but this is very rare magic. You may need to convince me, and if you do, I want you to be able to."

"What should I say?"

Regina leaned in, her lips moving so close to Bae's ear that the words never reached Belle's. He nodded slowly as she pulled away. "Okay."

"Okay," she agreed, pulling in a deep breath. "Let's get started, and remember: we have a deal. I'm sending you, so you'll help me get Henry back." She paused, shaking her head. "You'll help me _earn_ Henry back."

"We have a deal, Regina," Bae promised her, reclining back on the fainting couch. His entire posture was stiff and uncomfortable, but he offered a quick smile in Belle's direction as he settled back and asked, "So what do you need me to do?"

"You'll need to drink this," she answered, offering him a vial of a strange liquid. It was deep red in colour with swirls of gold winding through it. He took it from her and knocked it back like a shot at the bar, a shudder running through his whole body afterwards. "Now relax as best you can and focus. You've already shown an aptitude for magic. If you open yourself up to it and it'll help guide you," she continued. "Focus on where you want to be and what time you want to be in. The spell will do the rest."

Belle watched with wide, unsure eyes. In that moment she didn't feel very courageous as the spell worked its way through her love's son and he sucked in a rattling breath, every muscle going stiffer than before. His eyes were squeezed closed and Regina sat to one side, her hands stretched outward and magic swirled visibly around them. She'd often heard Rumple speak of magic as if he could see it as easily as he could feel it, and in that moment she understood what he'd meant. Wisps the same colour as the potion had begun to swirl around Bae, moving through him. Power surged and an unnatural wind picked up in the room as a terrible shudder ran through his body, lifting him nearly off the couch and then he went entirely still. His fingers loosened from the fists they'd formed and his face relaxed. He was lying still on the fainting couch, almost as if he were asleep.

Regina let a long breath out and finally opened her eyes, turning her gaze towards Belle. "It's done."

"How do we know if it worked?"

"We don't," the Evil Queen answered honestly. "At least we hope we don't. If we continue to remember this moment then that means that nothing has changed and Neal failed."

"And we failed."

"Yes."

Belle nodded numbly and pulled as much air into her lungs as they would hold before releasing it. She had to choose to have courage now. There was no turning back.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I mentioned in the prologue that this idea had crept up after watching a movie recently, but I couldn't tell you which one before because it would have spoiled this chapter. The movie was the new X-Men Days of Future Past. When Robin told me that plot bunnies would attack after seeing it (and obviously they did), I couldn't imagine what in an X-Men movie would spark Once plot bunnies, but she knows of my love of getting around season three in new and creative ways.

Let me know what you think of it so far. I'm super excited about this one. :)

Next time -

Chapter Two: That Place You Miss in which Bae makes his way to Storybrooke.


	3. That Place You Miss

**Chapter Two: That Place You Miss**

He had spent more years than he hadn't running now. He'd run from the feelings of abandonment, from loneliness, and finally from fear. At this point, he was pretty sure he'd made more wrong decisions than right, and maybe he could understand his father a bit better because of that. Not everything was quite as black and white as he'd once believed.

He was floating in darkness, some sort of limbo. Though he was certain that he wasn't actually touching anything, his limbs felt heavy, as if he would begin to sink at an moment when gravity remembered where he was. It was a strange sensation, and for a moment he wondered if he'd dreamt the part where he'd changed his mind. Maybe he'd shoved the key into the lock and twisted, exchanging his life for his father's. What would the inside of the Vault of the Dark One look like anyway? Whatever it might have been, he was pretty sure that the vault that birthed the first Dark One didn't have an alarm clock. Well, maybe it did.

The alarm continued to blare in his ear and Bae groaned, reaching out for it. He seemed to know more or less where to go for it and he blinked his eyes open as the alarm continued to scream - as if to prove that it was real and not part of a dream - until his fingers hit the snooze. He found himself looking up at a stained ceiling with a familiar crack running through it. Maintenance was supposed to look at it, but they'd never showed. Not that that was overly surprising.

Baelfire sat straight up in bed, finally risking a look around. The spell. Regina had cast a spell. He wasn't in the vault, he wasn't dead. Somehow, possibly against the odds, it had worked. It was supposed to drop his consciousness back into his body in the time he focused on. His mind had run wild as Regina cast it, pulling together all sorts of images and memories forward. The last thing he could remember before drifting off to sleep was his old apartment in Manhattan. He hadn't the faintest idea why that had come forward out of all of the places that he could go, but it had, and found the very familiar surroundings as he looked around.

Everything was exactly how he'd left it, almost as if he never had. He eased himself out of bed carefully, bare feet making contact with the chilled wooden floor and he moved through the opening into the main part of the apartment. Thunder rolled outside and he glanced over to his desk where a postcard lay. One side showed a picture of Storybrooke, but the other was August's handwriting. _Broken._ At least he hadn't managed to land in a time before the curse was broken. That would have been inconvenient to say the very least.

It was surreal to stand in his old apartment knowing everything that he now knew. When his father, Emma, and Henry had buzzed through the intercom he'd been more than willing to run. He didn't want to face his father. In fact, he'd been so afraid of doing so that he'd been willing to let Emma go forever. That had been a mistake - on both ends - he knew now, and he'd make sure it wasn't one that he made again. He lived her, and even if she chose someone else he needed to make sure he was in his son's life. Henry deserved his father, and Bae was willing to do anything to be the dad he wanted him to be.

Bae moved around the apartment, finding things pretty much as he expected to. Emma had said he didn't look like he had much going for him and in truth she'd been right. It didn't look that way, at least, but he'd been in New York nearly three years by the time she'd dropped in on him and had lived in that apartment for nearly seven months. There were some goofy decorations, drawings, plates, a few clothes. Really nothing to prove he was willing to settle down for any length of time. As it appeared on the surface, he was a man willing to move at the drop of a hat. It hadn't been too far from the truth, especially after that postcard had arrived.

He grabbed a duffle bag and started shoving clothes in, not really paying attention to what they were. It didn't matter. What did matter was finding a way to get to Storybrooke without wasting any more time. He could fly into Boston and rent a car there or maybe take the train down. He didn't have the _Jolly Roger_ to cut the time in half. Hell, he didn't even know if Killian was in the Land Without Magic yet. He'd have to wait until he actually got to Storybrooke to get his bearings, but once he did he could find his dad. Rumplestiltskin was the only person likely to believe him anyway.

His hands stilled, halfway through shoving a t-shirt into the bag. Henry wouldn't know him, he realized suddenly. Emma had told their kid that his father was dead. She'd hated him so much that she couldn't even bear the idea of their son knowing he was alive somewhere out there. She hadn't even told him that they _had_ a son. He understood her anger, really he did. She was hurt and she was confused, but Belle's response when Bae had found Emma's necklace in his jacket pocket back in their land rang through his mind. It'd come through because of True Love. As a kid Bae certainly hadn't seen any signs that it existed, but as an adult, after everything he'd seen and been through, if he loved anyone with all his heart it was Emma Swan.

* * *

It was late evening by the time that Baelfire crossed the townline coming into Storybrooke. He could feel the magic wash over him as the rental car broached that spraypainted line, and he couldn't have possibly imagined the sense of homecoming that took hold. The drive in showed everything to be intact and the world was moving like his hadn't been destroyed. It hadn't, though. Not yet. He had time to fix it first.

Time may have started moving when Emma decided she believed in magic, but there would always be a timelessness about the little town. The cars, all mid eighties models or earlier, lined the streets as they did every evening, but driving by the pawn shop showed it to be closed down early. Well, he thought it was closed down early. As best as he'd been able to tell his father really didn't keep regular hours. The library was dark as he passed by, and he finally pulled to the side of the street and parked. At least Granny's was lit up still.

Bae stepped out of the car and the cool breeze caught him as he crossed the street and walked under the terrace towards the front door of the diner. It was a Saturday night, according to his cell phone, but that didn't mean that Granny's would be full. In fact, only a few people sat littered around the diner, all eyes turning to stare at him. They didn't know him here, he remembered. He was a stranger in a place where strangers were neither wanted nor needed. He paused at the doorway, blinking at the dwarves sitting at the bar and Marco and Archie in a booth. David also sat at the bar, but he looked like he was waiting for an order to be delivered out, and Bae thought his heart might have stopped for half a moment when his eyes turned to Henry. His son was sitting in a booth, also looking at him with wide, dark eyes so very much like his own. He looked surprised to see him, but not for the reason Bae would have prefered.

Ruby set a hot chocolate and a beer down on the counter and motioned at the visitor until David turned to look. The prince's blue eyes came to rest on Bae and he cleared his throat. "Hello."

"Hey," Bae returned carefully, still very aware of the interested and wary stares he was receiving. He tried looking at Ruby like everything was normal. Poor girl had enough toworry about without strangers heightening the tension. "Could I get a burger?"

"Sure," she answered as chipperly as she could manage before she made her way immediately into the kitchen, doors swinging behind her.

"Are you new here?"

Bae looked down at Henry who was suddenly standing right next to him. "Um… yeah," he said after a moment. "I'm just visiting."

"Why?"

"Henry," David chided and the boy shrugged.

"What? No one ever comes here."

That brought a small smirk from Baelfire and his lips quirked up lopsidedly. "I'm trying to find someone."

"Someone that lives here?" his inquisitive son asked.

"I hope so." He moved slowly, taking a seat at the bar a couple of stools down from David and tried not to look too nervous at the fact that only a couple of the dwarves seemed to be more interested in eating rather than staring at him. Before he'd been welcomed into Storybrooke. They knew who he was and that he wasn't a threat. These people that had so much to hide had no such reassurances now, but what could he say? _Hey, I'm Rumplestiltskin's son. You know where my dad is?_ didn't seem like the best opening line. He knew his father's reputation well enough.

"Who is it? David's the acting sheriff. Maybe he can help you find them."

"Acting?" Bae echoed and Ruby set the hamburger down in front of him. He offered her a smile and she returned it carefully.

"My… uh… Henry's mother is the sheriff," David stumbled over his explanation, "but she's… away. I've just stepped in until we can get her back. Who are you looking for? We'd be happy to help you."

"Mr Gold, actually. I think he owns a pawn shop in town."

"Why would you want to find Mr Gold?" Henry asked, taking the seat that was open between Bae and David.

"I'm hoping he can help me with something."

Henry grabbed for his hot chocolate and took a long sip. "Have you come very far?"

"Yeah, a pretty long ways," Bae admitted softly.

Granny suddenly appeared at the kitchen door, as if her wolf sense had picked up on a customer for the night. "Well do you have a place to stay?"

"I was hoping to stay at the inn. I guess I'd need to talk to you about that, huh?"

"I might be able to scrounge a room for you," the innkeeper said with a thoughtful nod. "If I could get your name I'll go get you the key now and you can take your stuff up once you've finished."

"If Gold wasn't at his shop there's no telling where he's at tonight," David offered. "It should probably wait until morning."

Bae tried not to look too disappointed. He'd told Henry that he'd traveled a long ways to get there, and that had been an understatement. He'd bent a rule of magic to get there, but as he sat in Granny's Diner with his son perched on the stool next to him, he couldn't help but be pleased with the choice. He'd find his dad and his papa would help him to set everything right. He'd know what to do.

Granny was still waiting for him and he shook himself out of his thoughts. "Sorry. I'm Neal," he said, finding that name better fitted for his search than his own. "Neal Cassidy."

* * *

Rumplestiltskin rarely bothered to keep the hours he had posted on his shop. It wasn't as if there were a great number of people scrambling for nicknacks nowdays, not with the curse broken at all. Not that the damn thing had broken quite as he'd expected it to. He may have written it, but not even he had been able to prepare for every possible outcome.

The issue with the townline was a setback that had put him into a foul mood since he'd found out. He was still trying to find a way to cross it without losing his memories - rendering the entire endeavour meaningless if he couldn't find Bae - but had yet to uncover anything concrete. With each failed attempt he grew more and more frustrated. He needed something to distract his mind from it at least for a few hours.

That morning, though, as he walked around the corner of his shop, he found an unexpected visitor waiting for him at the locked door. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked irritably, shooting a meaningful glare at Charming.

"Do you know a Neal Cassidy?" David asked, not bothering to play at the niceties. They might have had something akin to a truce between them, but neither man was under any disillusion that that meant anything less than they'd stay out of each other's way.

"Should I?" Rumplestiltskin asked as he turned the key in the front door and stepped inside. He hadn't needed a key in some time, but old habits died hard. He'd spent nearly thirty years believing he wasn't a great deal more than a pawn shop broker with connections everywhere and a law degree on the side.

Charming followed. "He seems to know you."

"Many people do," the Dark One responded and just barely resisted to urge to roll his eyes. Many was an understatement. As Mr Gold his name hung outside of the pawn shop for all of Storybrooke to see and as the owner and landlord on most leases held in the town. As Rumplestiltskin his name was known in certain circles and muttered in fewer still. Both worlds allowed him to enjoy the power that came with the name. "What of it?"

"He's not from here," David said, his voice low as if there were anyone else was in the shop at that hour that would fan the flame of rumour.

It did catch Rumplestiltskin's attention though. He'd had people come to Storybrooke looking for him and it hadn't turned out well for him. He didn't care to repeat the incident. "Who is he?"

"I was hoping you'd know. As you can imagine, strangers in Storybrooke won't be good for anyone."

"Agreed."

Charming paused a moment, as if waiting for something, but for what Rumple wasn't sure. He might have had the gift of Foresight - as unpredictable as it was here in the Land Without Magic - but he couldn't read minds. He was fairly certain he wouldn't want to read the blond prince's mind even if he could. Finally, the taller man sighed. "He's young, maybe about thirty or so? Dark hair, dark eyes. Nice enough, but-"

"It doesn't matter how nice they are if they catch sight of magic being tossed around," Rumplestiltskin answered. "He asked for Gold?"

"He did."

"Anything else?"

"Just that he'd come a long way and hoped you could help him with something."

Rumplestiltskin leaned against one of the counters, mind running like mad even if he only appeared thoughtful to the onlooking shepherd-prince. If he were truly from the outside he'd have no knowledge of what this town was, but if he had been caught up in the curse and had found a way to leave without losing his memories, therefore allowing him back in... Well, that could make him valuable. "And you're certain you've never seen him before?"

"He's not from here. He's staying at Granny's." David sighed. "I was hoping you'd have some idea of who he was. It's not like I can just lock the guy up for visiting, but there are things that outsiders really shouldn't stumble across here."

The sorcerer quirked an eyebrow. Good to know Charming had thought that through at least, but it didn't sound like that thought process had gone much further. Well, the man was rather wrapped up in finding a way to bring his wife and daughter back. "So what _are_ you planning to do?" Rumplestiltskin asked after a moment.

Charming frowned. "I'm not quite sure yet. Will you... Well just let me know if this guy approaches you, will you?"

A thin, knowing smile crossed the Dark One's lips. "Are you asking for a favour then?"

"I would hope that I wouldn't have to ask you for a favour on this, as it seems you're just as much in the middle if it as the rest of us. Possibly more"

He was getting better at this, Rumple had to admit, though he hardly had to admit it to David's face. "Fair enough. If I find that I can't handle it-"

"I'd really like to avoid you _handling_ it. That's the point."

"Is it now? You'll forgive me if I don't have quite the faith the others in town seem to have placed in you."

"Just... Don't draw attention," Charming sighed and it brought a low chuckle from the elder man.

"Discretion is one of my finer qualities," Rumplestiltskin assured him with an impish smile. He watched the prince leave without another word, shaking his head. Charming knew as well as Rumple did that if this visitor posed any threat at all that he'd be dead in an instant and no one would find the body. He hoped that this young man would prove useful rather than threatening. Though if it did turn out as the latter, there wouldn't be enough left of him for anyone to find.

* * *

Belle hadn't known quite what she was getting herself into when she'd taken on the project of reopening the library. Rumple had given her the key and had told her everything. Well, not _everything_. She wasn't fool enough to believe that, but certainly more than he usually trusted people with and that's what she needed from him. She knew he loved her, that wasn't the question. She needed him to be brave enough to trust her as well.

Books were piled high all around her as she sorted through them. She'd spoken to him a couple of times since she'd been ready to let him go. The insecurity in his voice was odd, but she thought that might be just another sign that he was opening up. He didn't dare let anyone else hear it, but he'd stammered his way through asking how the library was coming and if she needed anything at all for the renovations. She didn't yet, she'd assured him, and had made him promise to come by and see it once she was finished. He'd gone silent then and she'd wondered if she had said something wrong before he'd told her softly that he'd like nothing else better.

Belle smiled to herself as she dusted off yet another book from the box she was currently working on. To was well past time for Storybrooke to have an active, functioning library. Henry Mills had been dropping in reguay and asking when the doors would open. When the little bell over the front door dinged, she thought it might him, but as she peered around the stacks and stacks of reading material, she saw a man that she couldn't recall having seen before, even if there was something familiar about those dark eyes. He stopped at the opening, looking around as if it weren't at all what he expected. "I'm sorry," Belle offered as she stood, making herself visible from behind the boxes of books. "We're not quite open yet. Still trying to get everything in order."

The man offered her a startled, but easy smile. "I can see that. Got your hands full, huh?"

The soon-to-be librarian grinned. "I enjoy it, actually. I know it sounds silly, but there's something comforting about being surrounded by so much knowledge. I could never soak it all up in one lifetime, but it's fun to try."

His smile thinned out a little and he ran a hand through his grey-flecked hair, clearing his throat. "I was.. Ah. Well, actually hoping you might be able to answer a question for me."

She offered him an encouraging smile. The man looked like he could use one in that moment. "Sure, if I can."

"I'm... visiting. I'm new here and I'm looking for someone. Mr Gold."

Belle tried to keep her expression even. Why would a stranger be looking for Rumple? "Have you tried his shop?"

"I dropped by last night when I got in. He'd already gone. I thought you might know when he usually gets there."

He looked more and more uncomfortable as the moments between his question and her still yet to be spoken answer came. She realized that and felt her face heat just a little. This was silly. It was just a man looking for Rumple. That wasn't abnormal. "It depends on the day, but he's likely there now."

"Thanks," he said with a quick smile.

She watched him go, the door closing behind him and she pulled her cell phone out and hitting redial. It might be silly, but she'd rather him know.

* * *

The sense of homecoming from the night before had been dulled some by the headache that Bae had woken with. He didn't know if it had something to do with the spell or if he just hadn't slept well, but the constant pounding was something he could have done without. He'd nearly slipped twice to Belle, even if he'd only been in there a whopping five minutes or so. He'd spent so much time with her recently that it was natural to slip back into that familiarity. She didn't know him, though. Not yet.

There wasn't a great deal if distance between the library and the pawn shop, though there wasn't a great deal of distance between _anything_ in Storybrooke. In a small way it reminded Bae of the little village he'd grown up in. Nothing moved and nothing changed. The same people could be seen day in and day out. There were more differences than similarities in the details. Even though there were sometimes violent skirmishes, people weren't being sent off to die in war. They had modern medicine and medical care and various other perks that the Land Without Magic of that particular day and age had to offer. All in all, he was rather fond of it. He'd thought, from the brief time he'd had on the _Jolly Roger_ with his father after they'd gone to rescue Henry, that his father was too. It was home.

The bell announced Bae's entrance and he found the blinds pulled tight across the windows so that only streams of light danced across the wooden floors of the shop. He hadn't been nervous until now, but something built inside of him as he looked around, knowing that his father would have never left the door open unless he were somewhere inside. There was shuffling in the back office and the steady tap of a cane hitting the floor. Rumplestiltskin paused as he exited, dark eyes carefully guarded and Baelfire felt his chest constrict just a little. He'd watched this man die just a few months prior. He'd sacrificed himself for his family, but here he stood as if none of that had happened. In fact, none of it had happened yet at all.

"So," the shop owner drawled, his voice much colder than Bae was expecting, "I suppose you're the one that's been looking for me."

Bae swallowed hard, the words catching in his throat as they tried to come up. "Yeah."

"Neal Cassidy is the name that I've been hearing 'round," Rumplestiltskin said as he came closer. "Doesn't seem to suit you though. Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"You don't recognize me," Bae breathed, trying not to feel the sting too deeply.

"Should I?" his father snapped.

For a moment the younger man wondered if he'd been mistaken somehow. Maybe the curse wasn't broken in Storybrooke. Emma had been here a while before it had been broken, hadn't she? Maybe this was Mr Gold he was speaking to and only Mr Gold. As far as he knew his father's Storybrooke persona didn't have a son and wouldn't have cared about a young man that came looking for him. He hadn't really considered the possibility that Rumplestiltskin wouldn't recognize him. After all, he'd known him so readily when he'd come looking for him in Manhattan. "Papa, it's me," he whispered before he quite knew the words were leaving his mouth.

The elder man went stiff, dark eyes widening a moment before narrowing dangerously. "Get out."

"What?"

"I don't know who you are or what your game is, but it's a dangerous one you're playing, dearie. Get out before I make you regret playing it."

Bae pulled in a steadying breath, taking a step towards him and catching him as he turned to retreat to the back room, his fingers grabbing at the expensive material of his suit. "I'm not playing a game. It's me, Papa. It's Bae."

Rumplestiltskin whirled on him, fire in his eyes and power radiated off of him. "You reek of dark magic. You're not my son. He'd never touch it. You're not my Baelfire."

He stumbled back and he wasn't sure if it was because of the words or if his papa's magic had physically pushed him away. It could have been a bit of both, but it didn't push him all the way to the door. Instead, he saw what was perched up on a shelf by it and he moved quickly, snatching the ball from its sitting place before the other man could disappear as previously planned. "You remember how I got this?"

"It's not yours."

"We were at Longbourne late one autumn," he said, ignoring the sharp and cutting tone. "I asked you for it, but we didn't have enough with the winter coming. You bought it anyway, and you made me promise to be careful with it." He watched his father stop as he spoke, turning around with a terrified expression on his face. Bae found himself smiling and shaking his head at the memory. "I was what, ten? I thought I knew so much. Morraine and I were playing in the street as soon as we got home and I slipped on an early patch of ice and fell."

"You broke your wrist," his papa whispered hollowly.

"Yeah, and you kept calling and calling for me. You were so scared that it wouldn't heal right or that something terrible would happen and I'd never be able to use my hand right again." He paused, weary of moving forward. If he did he might shatter what he hoped was his father's understanding slowly spinning into being, but without warning Rumplestiltskin went rigid again, shaking his head frantically.

"No. _No_, I won't be tricked again. I won't be. My son would never come looking for me. He wouldn't-"

Bae crossed the space between them then and he put a hand to either side of his father's face and forced him to look forward. "_Look_ at me. I came for you, Papa. I came looking for you. Please don't push me away." He hadn't expected to be so completely shut down and turned out by the father that had ripped apart the worlds to find him. Here he was now, having to beg to be heard, just as Rumplestiltskin had begged him in that little apartment in Manhattan and he'd shut him down just the same. Fear did terrible things, Bae realized. The fear of being wrong about something and sometimes even the fear of being right. He hadn't wanted to know if his father was a changed man then, and even now he knew he wasn't a saint. He never would be, but that didn't matter to him anymore. At least not as much as getting his family back, and in that moment he couldn't imagine his family whole without him.

Bae sniffed, the emotions running high between them and he tried to keep his gaze steady, but the warring look in his father's dark eyes was beginning to claw at his certainty of the plan he, Belle, and Regina had devised. His hands dropped back to his sides and he loosed a shaky breath. "Papa, please," he begged one more time.

Rumplestiltskin's left hand came up to his face, trembling as he touched it. "Bae?"

"Yeah, Papa, it's me."

Arms wrapped around him as the cane clattered to the floor and Bae returned the embrace readily, his grip tight. He buried his face in his father's shoulder and tried to remind himself that he needed to breathe.

"I thought I'd lost you forever, son," his papa whispered, not letting go. "I've been looking. I came here, but then we were trapped, and I-"

"I know, Papa. I know everything about it. That's why I'm here."

The elder man pulled back and for a moment Bae thought that he was about to change his mind again, but there was worry in his eyes, not for being wrong, but for something else. "Oh, Bae, what have you done?"

The interruption came in the form of the door opening, Belle's voice following immediately after. "Rumple, did you find out… Oh. Hello."

They probably looked a sight with the way they were still clinging to each other. Bae offered a strained, but real smile as he put his arm around his papa so that he could shift his weight to keep it off of his bad ankle. The emotional outpour had left him feeling drained and he'd been expecting… something, at least. He couldn't imagine what was going through the elder man's mind now.

Rumplestiltskin looked as if he might be ready to spin some sort of half truth, but he caught himself, pulling in a deep breath and loosing it in the form of a sigh. "Yes, Belle, I did find out who he was. Bae, this is Belle. Belle…. this is my son. Baelfire."

Her clear blue eyes widened. "Your son?"

"Hey," Bae greeted, but his father's voice brought him back around to him.

"Bae, you must tell me quickly what you've done. I meant it when I said I can feel dark magic from you. What happened?"

It was something more than an emotional outpouring then. It was something that the spell had carried over. The headache was worse now and his ears were ringing. It made it difficult to focus through and he blinked steadily for a moment, trying to clear his vision. "There was a spell. In your castle."

"In our land? How did you make it there?"

He could feel his vision tunnelling and he knew he didn't have long to explain. "The spell sent me back. My… consciousness…. It bypassed the no timetravel rule."

"Oh Bae," his father whispered, pain etched into his voice as his hand came to the side of his face. "What have you done?"

"I had to find you, Papa. I had to-"

Then he was sinking, the world around him dark and smothering and he could hear his papa calling out his name as his knees gave way beneath him.

* * *

TBC

Notes: It's always bothered me (not particularly on the writing level, just for Bae's sake) that Rumple seemed so much more honest with August (when he thought he was Bae) than he did with Baelfire himself. I think to a degree that the incident with August embedded a terrible fear of being wrong or saying just the wrong thing to the point that he completely botched the actual reunion. The first time he understands he can't make up for past mistakes and he's open and honest about that, simply begging for a chance to make it right from that point forward, but by the time he actually gets to Bae he's trying to wipe out the mistakes, seeming to completely miss the issue entirely. I think he knows how badly he screwed up, he just couldn't say it again after he'd said it to the wrong person. Just a thought.

Next time - Chapter Three: All Magic Comes with a Price, in which rumours begin to spread and Rumple gets some answers.


	4. All Magic Comes with a Price

**Chapter Three: All Magic Comes with a Price**

Her imagination had come up with several different scenarios of who the mysterious man looking for Rumple might be, but his son hadn't been one of them. From what he'd told her the parting had been terrible. He'd abandoned him, Rumple had confessed, emotions that he usually kept so well under wraps bubbling to the surface. Finding him was the reason behind him writing the curse that had brought them to this land. It had been his driving force for three centuries, but as far as he'd told her he had never expected Baelfire to seek _him_ out.

The drop had been rather sudden. He'd looked tired when he stopped by the library, but not nearly as ill as he appeared now. Rumple had been right there and sank to the ground with him, one arm wrapped around his son and a surprisingly even expression on his face as he checked him over.

"Is he really..?" Belle started, but couldn't quite finish.

"I think so."

"You don't sound sure."

Rumple grimaced, his eyes only barely flickering up to her before he continued to check to make sure the man in his arms wasn't in any unforeseen danger. "I hadn't dared to hope," he whispered after a moment.

Belle knelt down next to them hesitantly. She didn't want to intrude, but she couldn't leave him alone right now either. "What happened to him?"

Skilled hands that were shimmering ever so slightly with magic were checking him over, though Baelfire never roused. "Someone cast a spell that he took part in. It's... an incredibly complicated spell. It usually would require two very powerful magic users. One to cast it, one to...go."

"Go?" Belle echoed. "Go where? Is it some sort of teleportation spell?"

"No. It's as close to time travel as one might get. If memory serves, it sends the person's consciousness back, not their physical form. That's one reason it's so complicated." He looked up at her, dark eyes keen and it pulled on memories of her days with him in the Dark Castle when he'd taken the time to explain something he was working on. "Both consciousnesses reside in one body. Theoretically, the traveling one will usually fight for dominance, but the process is jarring. When you combine that with the fact that whoever cast it didn't seem to understand it in full, it's left a fair amount of Dark magic racing through his system."

"Is he going to be alright?"

"Oh yes. I'll make sure he is," Rumple answered easily. "He'll need some rest."

Belle hesitated. She'd always been a quick study of anything she put her mind to, but magic made her nervous. "This may be a silly question," she murmured, "but are you saying Baelfire - this Baelfire - is from the future?"

"Of sorts," he answered thoughtfully. "I fear we'll need to wait until he's well enough to wake to get the full story. I couldn't imagine something so desperate that would drive my son to dark magic."

"You took on your curse for him, didn't you?"

"I did, but Bae was always stronger than me."

Belle pursed her lips together thoughtfully, weighing her next words. "It's been many years, Rumple. Are you _certain_ that this is Baelfire. I know you want him to be-"

"He knows too much not to be. Things that no imposter could know." His fingers worked their way through grey-flicked hair. "I'll make certain, though."

She knew there was likely a way, but she hadn't the faintest idea how. "Can I do anything to help?"

"If you would, thank you. David had mentioned he was staying over at Granny's. His things will likely be there. I'll need to get him to my house to have access to what I need."

Belle nodded and stood slowly. "I'll bring them over." She paused at the shop door and turned, watching Rumple check over his ill son once more. The expression on his face remained guarded, but there was hope not too far behind it. She could only pray that it wasn't ill-placed. It would shatter Rumple to have a reconciliation with his son dangled out in front of him only to have it snatched away.

The thoughts lingered as she walked down the street to Granny's. She sighed as she stepped into the diner, finding only a few stragglers there for breakfast. Ruby was busy putting together a basket of food for the dwarves in the mines, and she glanced up. "Belle!"

"Hey," she greeted, taking a seat and leaning closer so she and her friend could speak as quietly as possible. "I have a favour to ask you."

Ruby laughed. "Okay?"

"I need you to promise to keep something to yourself, alright?" She waited until the taller woman nodded slowly before glancing around, not entirely convinced that the dwarf a couple seats over waiting on the food to take back to his brothers wasn't trying to listen in. "The man that came in last night, did you meet him?"

"Briefly. He stayed in the inn. Do you know who he is?"

"Rumple thinks he does."

"Who? He's supposed to tell David as soon as this guy contacts him."

Belle resisted the urge to roll her eyes. The likelihood of that happening was very low. "It's someone he knows. Don't worry, the man isn't a threat to us and Rumple isn't a threat to him." _As long as he is who he says he is, _she wanted to say, but she didn't dare. David, as well-meaning as he'd be, would be sure to jump on the middle of this if she did. With the way that Happy kept thinking he was being discrete in the way he was eavesdropping, it would only be a matter of time anyway.

"I trust you, Belle. Not so sure I trust Rumplestiltskin."

"I know, Ruby, but I do. He's trying. Really he is, and if this man is who he says he is... It'll be good for him."

"If he's not?"

"Then we'll deal with it, but I have to believe Rumple will do his best to handle it well."

Ruby heaved a sigh and rested her chin against the palms of her hands, elbows braced against the counter. "What do you need?"

"Rumple said he's staying here. I was just going to grab his things for him."

The werewolf quirked an eyebrow. "Why doesn't he come get them?"

"He's not... well. I think it has to do with how he got here. Rumple said he'd have more answers once he's feeling better."

"Okay," Ruby answered as if she didn't really believe the story, but she _did_ trust Belle. "I'll have them down in just a couple minutes." She paused, as if she were thinking very hard on something and then turned. "Do you think Mr Gold might be in his shop later on? I've been looking for something from our world and I can't seem to find it."

Belle smiled. "Well, when things don't show up form our world in our own possession, if they come over they're often in Rumple's shop. I don't know when he's going back or if he is today, but give me a call when you need to take a look and if he can't make it I'll get him to give me the key."

"He'd do that? Just… let us rummage around?"

The blue eyed woman laughed. "I don't think we'll make much of a mess. The man has never been the most organized of sorts."

Ruby nodded slowly. "I'll call after the lunch crowd. It usually slows down. Thanks. I'll go get the suitcase."

Belle smiled and watched her go, settling in to wait and wondered if Ruby would be quicker with the clothes or whatever else he'd brought with him than Happy would be to fetch David as the dwarf scurried out the door now that his order was ready.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had settled his son into one of the guest rooms in his three-story house. He'd woken only briefly, his fever spiking even as he did and then drifted back off to sleep. The man that had sought him out was, in fact, the son he'd been looking for. After the terrible event with August Booth he hadn't dared trust his own raging emotions. Once he'd gotten him settled and his own spells working to counter the nasty side effects of the spell he'd taken part in, Rumple had taken just a moment to place a couple of loose hairs into a beaker. Magic swirled and confirmation was given in the only way he could really accept now. This was Baelfire and he'd been desperate enough to do something utterly foolish.

Bae was mumbling a bit in his sleep and his father pulled a chair up to the side of the bed, easing himself into it and resting his cane against the nearby dresser. The counterspell was working through him slowly, but it hadn't done enough yet to ease the lines in his face deepened by the pain. Rumplestiltskin reached forward, one hand going to his son's forehead and the other taking hold of his limp hand. Fingers flexed ever so slightly in his own and a small smile came to his lips. He'd spent so long looking for him that to find him now - and to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was him - brought a strange sort of warmth to him that he hadn't been sure he could feel again outside of his time with Belle.

Slowly, carefully, Rumple added to the spell already working through Baelfire. The young man's body and mind was having trouble adjusting to the shock of the spell that had shoved his consciousness into an earlier point in time, so to speed up this process without taking the necessary precautions could do more harm than good. He used himself as an anchor, the darkness not burning him like it did his son, and after a moment he felt at least some of the tension ease away and Bae let out a weak cough, his dark eyes sliding sluggishly open. "Papa?"

"Hey," Rumplestiltskin greeted softly and Bae squeezed his hand, a tired smile making it to his lips. "How're you feeling?"

"Like I got run over by a truck. I think it backed up for another go too."

His father gave a short chuckle. "It's bound to take some time to get your bearings. The darkness of the spell you used clung to you."

"I felt fine when I got here last night."

"You came from beyond the town line. Once you cross it, there's magic here. You're likely to be a little worn down yet. It'll pass."

Bae leaned in towards where his papa's hand rested against his forehead, pulling at some of the darkness left behind. "Feels good," he murmured and Rumple thought he'd drifted back off again until he spoke softly. "Guess I startled you this morning, huh?"

"A bit, yes," Rumplestiltskin admitted in a faint whisper.

"Sorry. Didn't know where else to go. I knew you'd know what to do. How to fix it."

Hope reared its often traitorous head and Rumple tried to keep it in check. The fact that Bae had know where to seek him out meant that in whatever time he'd been pulled from they'd likely come across each other and Bae had spent time in Storybrooke. Until his son was strong enough to speak at length about it, there'd be no telling what those details were, or even what had been so terrible that he'd come back to fix it. The truth remained though, even if he didn't know the details, that Bae had sought _him_ out for help with the problem, just as he had when he was young and Rumplestiltskin had been the father he'd loved. "We'll fix it, Bae. I promise."

Bae chuckled. "You always try to fix everything," he said, his voice slurred with sleep trying to creep back in. "I hope... I need you to help, Papa. I need them back."

"Need who back, Bae?"

"My son," he whispered and then sleep had claimed him again, leaving Rumplestiltskin to stare in shock. Bae had a son. The desperation made sense now. His father could certainly understand it. Dark magic pulled on desperation, even desperation to save those that you loved.

Carefully, Rumple raised his son's limp hand to his lips and pressed a tentative kiss to it. "We'll save your son, Bae. I won't fail you again."

He heard the front door opening downstairs and the faintly irritated voice of his True Love arguing with someone. None of his wards seemed to be sensing an honest threat, but he stood, swaying a bit at the movement after draining so much darkness from Bae. His curse would take it in and make use of it, but it left him a little light headed at first. Slowly he steadied himself, grabbed his cane, and left the room as quietly as he could to see what all the commotion was.

* * *

Balancing Storybrooke sometimes seemed more difficult than balancing two kingdoms within the Enchanted Forest. Granted, he'd had Snow at his side in the Enchanted Forest. David was certain if she were there now she'd know just how to approach this situation. Not that he really knew what it was. A man had come to Storybrooke and Rumplestiltskin knew him. He hadn't liked how the wily sorcerer had handled the conversation just a couple hours before, but pressuring him into doing anything he didn't want to was difficult on the very best of days and dangerous to anyone in the vicinity on a bad day.

That's why it was best to catch Belle first. The librarian was on her way up the steps as he pulled up to the three-story pink house and battling for a key while balancing what looked like the luggage Happy had said she was sent after. If Belle was involved, it made David a little easier about the situation, but he still needed answers. Rumours would spread that there was a visitor and when they did he needed to have answers if he was was going to ease people's panic.

"Hey, Belle?"

The beauty glanced his way, looking as exasperated as he'd ever seen her and he reached out to take the bag from her. "Here, let me help you with that."

"Thank you, but I know why you're here, David."

Well, he'd always heard she was sharp. Henry adored her. To keep his mind off of the fact that his birth mother and grandmother had been pulled through a portal that probably had dropped them back into a land that might or might not exist, that his step mother struggling to be what he needed, and the dreams that pulled at him every night, the kid had needed a break and had started taking one once or twice a week in the library with Belle. "I know, but I just need to make sure everything is in the open. The rumours are going to spread and I-"

Belle bristled just a little, though her irritation was utterly controlled next to Rumplestiltskin's. "The town doesn't need to know everyone's business all the time, David," she told him firmly as the key clicked into place and the door opened.

"A stranger affects us all."

"Good thing he's not a stranger then," Rumplestiltskin's voice wafted down from the landing leading to the second floor. He looked down at David, not quite accusingly, but the prince knew better than to think that a cheerful sound coming from him meant he was overlooking the intrusion into his home - that David realized he was now standing inside of - that it might feel like. "Come on in, Charming. Make yourself at home."

David set the bag he'd taken for Belle down. "You knew I'd come by when you didn't follow through."

"Give me five minutes, dearie," the Dark One snapped, even if the sharp edges were a little duller than usual.

"Who is he, Rumple?"

Rumplestiltskin's lips twitched. "Don't call me that."

David sighed. "Fine. Gold, who is he?"

That seemed to amuse him. "I've never heard you uncomfortable to use my name before. What changed?"

The younger man snorted and rolled his eyes. "_Rumplestiltskin_, who is the man that showed up last night?"

"Not so hard, was it?"

"Rumple," Belle admonished softly and even David saw how he relented some of the teasing at that. She was good for him, there was no question about it, but the prince wondered if he'd ever manage to be able to be good for her in return.

"His name is Baelfire. He's my son."

The words had come out quietly, but they caught David as if the smaller man had struck him. "Your… _what_?"

"My son," the Dark One repeated.

"I didn't… know you had one."

"And now you do."

He didn't know what to say. Anything that came to mind would never come across as he meant it to, though he hardly knew what he _meant_ it to come across as. Rumplestiltskin had a son. Had he had a family? A wife? Belle was hardly old enough to be the man's mother, but there might have been someone before her. Other children? It registered with David just how little he knew about the man that had sometimes played their ally, sometimes their foe, but he could say nothing further as his cellphone rang in his pocket and he pulled it numbly out. "Yeah?"

David barely heard anything on the other end until it registered that Doc was telling him that there'd been an accident in the mines. Leroy had fallen through into a hidden cavern and he needed to come quickly. He was still staring at Rumplestiltskin as he hung up the phone. "I have to go."

"I doubt I can convince you to keep this to yourself."

"I don't keep secrets from this town," David answer tightly, turning toward the door.

"Even when they're not yours to tell."

David ignored the jab and turned. He had bigger things to worry about right now, but that didn't mean that the newfound knowledge wasn't still burning in his mind.

* * *

Bae thought that he might have come around once or twice before now, but as he blinked his eyes open he felt a little more more human than he had felt before. The room didn't spin as badly and he could breathe without feeling like someone had put an old, wet cloth over his face. He shifted, making sure everything was working correctly, and found his papa sleeping there in the most awkward position that he thought he'd ever seen. He'd pulled a chair to the bedside and was craned over, bent at the waist so that his lying against the bed, bent arm tucked under his cheek. The other arm was attached to the hand that may never have left Bae's own.

The younger man smiled, squeezing his father's fingers. He'd known that he wanted to get back to him, but he hadn't understood quite how badly he needed to see him again after he'd watched him simply disappear from the earth. As in everything he'd done in Bae's lifetime his death had been a grand gesture. He wasn't under any of Belle's dissolutions - dissolutions that she might never have now - that his papa had died for anyone other than them. Maybe Henry too. He'd been warming to the idea that he was a grandfather and once Rumplestiltskin accepted you as family there was no going back. Definitely Henry too.

His papa stirred, coming back to wakefulness slowly and, from the looks of it, painfully. He winced at the terrible position and Bae found himself laughing softly. "Better ways to sleep, Papa."

"I'd meant to stay awake."

"Best laid plans and all that." Bae shifted again and managed to ease himself up this time. Rumplestiltskin watched him carefully but didn't make any demands that he lie back down, so he assumed he wasn't going to do any permanent damage. "How long was I out?"

"Only a few hours."

"Don't know why, but I thought it'd be a lot longer than that."

"I might have had something to do with that," his papa said with a small smile. He looked at Bae like he thought it might land him in some sort of trouble. When it didn't he straightened a little better and his gaze turned serious. "If you're well enough, son…."

"Guess you want to know why, huh?"

"I don't know what you've been through, but the last time I saw you, Bae, you abhorred magic. You wouldn't even let me heal an injury with it."

"You always did say that desperation makes us do things we might not do otherwise."

"And I've said that magic comes with a price, but that didn't seem to stick either."

Bae grinned and reached out a hand to him, finding his father ready to take it. "I get it now. The curse, I mean. There's a lot I'll never be able to understand, Papa, but I get being willing to give anything to get to and take care of your son."

"What happened to your boy, Bae?"

"We were separated. A lot of stuff happened and Regina had to reverse her curse. Your curse, I guess." The image of his father looking at him and explaining the curse to became vivid in his mind.

"So he's here? In Storybrooke?"

"Yeah. Reversing the curse took everyone back, but it would have left him alone."

"Why?"

"He was born here in the Land Without Magic."

Bae could see his father's clever mind working and he stared at his son. "Henry."

"Yeah."

"You and Emma."

"Yeah."

"Henry is my… grandson." He stopped a moment and looked like he was processing it. Finally he forced a long breath out through his nose and turned his gaze back to his son. "That doesn't make any sense, Bae. Why wouldn't I have just brought Henry with us? Regina may have cast the damn thing, but it's _my_ curse. I could have found a way."

Baelfire didn't know if there were any rules involving what he could or couldn't say, but he was pretty sure that if there were he'd broken them all just by coming in the first place. He _meant_ to shatter the reality that he'd lived. It was terrible, and he was willing to risk the unknown if it meant that his family would be safe. "You died, Papa," he whispered. "You saved us and you died."

"I see," his father said slowly.

"But we can fix it, Papa. I know it's probably not right to screw with everyone else's lives so that I could get back to the people I love, but… Maybe something good will come out of it too."

"Tell me what happened."

"All of it?"

"All of it," he confirmed, sitting back in the chair and watching Bae intently.

Baelfire had never been a storyteller, but he told it as best as he could. He told his father about how he had landed in Neverland after a brief stay in London, about how he and Emma had met, and how August had convinced him to let her go to jail and it'd been one of the worst mistakes of his life. He told him about how he and Emma and Henry had just shown up on his doorstep without so much as a warning and how angry he'd been. He watched his papa's expression try to remain even as he described their reunion in Manhattan and Bae could feel his own heart breaking. He'd been so angry then. Angry and hurt and betrayed and so very, very abandoned, but he hadn't understood. He'd made a mistake, Rumplestiltskin had told him. One that he regretted with everything he had in him, and even without those words spilling out in a rehearsed fashion, he could see it in the elder man's eyes as he tried to keep himself composed. He skipped over some of it and tried not to linger too much on Neverland when he saw his father wince at the name of the place at the first mention. "Belle and I were going to open up something called the Vault of the Dark One, but she talked me out of it."

"Good thing too. Whichever one of you that used the key would have died," his papa said tightly.

"Yeah, we found that out later." He thought about the way the book's letters had become clear for him and how the transportation spell hadn't worked for Belle but had obeyed his commands. He wanted to ask, but a different question rolled off his tongue instead. "When I came into the shop this morning you said you wouldn't be tricked again. What did you mean again?"

Rumplestiltskin went pale. "Nothing."

"No, you don't get to do that. I just told you everything, now it's my turn to ask a question."

A short chuckle left him. "We didn't make that deal."

"Didn't have to, Pop."

Some of the tension eased, but not all of it and Bae took his father's hand. It took several long moments of silence before he pulled in a deep breath and spoke quietly. "I don't know how much of this you know… if we talked about what happened after you… after I let you go." The words were forced out and he squeezed his eyes shut against them as if it might banish a terrible image playing over and over in his mind.

"No, we didn't. Not really. We didn't get the chance."

"I became _obsessed_ with find you. I traveled, I created plans, and sought after insane rumours that couldn't have been true if you wished on a lamp for them. Finally, I came across the same seer that predicted your birth. She told me I'd write the curse-" he motioned around them - "that would create Storybrooke. There were bits that had to be to deal with the price of something so massive. One of those things was that I couldn't cast it."

"Kind of like the spell that brought me here?"

"Exactly. Who cast that anyway?"

Bae chuckled. "Regina."

"Imagine that. She's quite talented, but don't tell her I've said so. She often needs a bit of work to reach her potential. She'll get lazy otherwise."

"Who tricked you, Papa?"

Rumplestiltskin pulled in another deep breath. "I set in some protections for myself. Regina was going to cast it so that everyone's wills bent to hers. Oh, I made sure that I'd live well. She agreed to that much at least, but that wasn't really the point. The point was to find you." His hand tightened around Bae, as if he were drawing the strength to keep going with the story. "So I made sure there'd be something to wake me up before the others so that when the savior came that I could help her along to breaking the curse."

"Emma."

"Emma. She woke me up. I was at Granny's collecting the rent and that name hit my ears. Can you imagine some three centuries suddenly rushing in on you? All at once a life that I thought I knew became meaningless and all that mattered was having her break the curse and going out into the world to find you. I'd have done it, Bae. I'd have crossed that line into a place without magic, without… I'd have done it."

"You _did_ do it, Papa," Bae assured him softly. "I know you would have, because for me you did. You still haven't answered my question though."

"A young man came into town before Emma broke the curse. He…" He paused, shaking his head. "No, Bae, please don't ask. I was a fool. A desperate fool. I should have _known_."

"Did someone impersonate me?" Bae asked, the question sounding idiotic even as he asked it. Who would have known to?

"I was a fool," Rumplestiltskin repeated.

Anger began to burn deep in Baelfire's chest and he reached out to him. He looked so hurt in that moment, so vulnerable. It wasn't a place he was used to seeing his father at. "Who was it?"

"A lad named August-"

"Booth? August Booth? Pinocchio?"

Rumplestiltskin snorted and nodded.

"I'm going to kill August. The guy that convinced me to leave Emma? That was August."

"I suppose we were both duped by him then. I'm sorry, son."

"I don't know what you're apologizing to me for. I'm going to break his nose next time I see him."

The door to the room opened and Belle appeared, whispering apologies even as she did. She had her cell phone pressed against her blouse and she looked directly at Rumplestiltskin. "Do you know if you have a long red cloak somewhere in the shop? It would have had a hood on it and-"

"Ruby's cloak?" he asked and reached for his cane, easing himself to stand.

"Yes. She's still looking for it and says she can't find it anywhere. She says it's important."

"I'd say so. Is that her? Tell her to meet me at the shop. We'll have a look."

Belle nodded, repeating the invitation as she walked back out. Bae's papa turned back to him. "I'm sorry, but this is quite important. Ruby has a condition-"

"She's a werewolf. Got that memo. You mind if I come along? I think if I try to sleep anymore I may go crazy."

He looked like he might argue for a moment but shrugged instead. "I'll admit I'd rather keep my eye on you for any other adverse effects."

"Could they show this late?"

"Never underestimate the price of dark magic, Bae, especially dark magic like you used."

* * *

TBC

Notes - Thank you everyone for the lovely reviews! Every one that hits my inbox makes me smile like crazy.

Next time - Chapter Four: Through the Fire, in which Henry gets to know Baelfire and King George stirs up trouble.


	5. Through the Fire

**Chapter Four: Through the Fire**

He kept glancing to the side as they walked, reminding himself that it wasn't a dream and that Bae had come for him. Oh, he wasn't a fool. Somewhere deep under the uncontrollable excitement he knew that Bae had risked shattering reality for his son, but Rumplestiltskin thought perhaps a small bit of him had wanted to save his father as well. Even if it were a small bit, it sounded like more than to had been in Bae's timeline.

Bae was moving slowly, but no slower than his father usually did with his limp as they approached the shop. Ruby was already waiting for them, looking more than a little nervous as she shifted her weight from side to side. She spotted Belle, though, and the tension eased a little. Her eyes then moved to Bae and a hesitant smile perked her lips. "The mystery guy again. Why do I get the feeling that the name isn't Neal Cassidy?"

Bae grinned openly. "Whatever have you that idea?"he reached a hand out to her. "Baelfire, actually. I'm his son."

Ruby's eyes followed back to where he'd nodded towards Rumplestiltskin and the Dark One gave a small nod of acknowledgement. Well, it wasn't like the town wasn't going to find out anyway, and Rumple preferred it coming from Bae's own lips rather than Charming's. It would ease him into a town that was overly wary of outsiders. They had decided that they should keep the truth about where he'd come from quiet. Rumplestiltskin had explained to his son something he might have already know: while those in Storybrooke were acquainted with magic on a basic level, few knew a great deal about it and likely wouldn't be able to grasp the complexity of the spell. He'd even had to promise Belle that he'd walk her through some of the details of it so she'd understand. There was no reason to start the rumour flying about town if it could be helped.

"Wow. I... didn't know you had a son," the wolf girl managed, staring wide-eyed at Rumple.

"I'm full of surprises. Shall we see if that hood of yours is in the shop?"

Ruby nodded as Rumplestiltskin stepped by her, the door clicking open without the need of a key. He could feel her eyes on him as bits of his magic leapt out to deal with mundane tasks. He hardly noticed it, but the young woman seemed absolutely fascinated, just as she had when he'd stopped the runaway cart determined to take Belle over the town line a week before.

"I didn't see the cloak during my last inventory count, but things that we need to have a tendency to appear."

"That's Rumple's way of saying that he might have missed it," Belle offered and Bae chuckled.

The glare Rumplestiltskin tried to toss their direction lacked its usual cutting edges. "Yes, yes. I am aware you are not fond of my organisational habits."

"You have organisational habits?" Bae asked, looking curiously at the pair of dolls that Rumplestiltskin had received from Jiminy as payment many, many years before.

Rumple rolled his eyes as Belle and Ruby went on the search for the cloak, chattering as they did. Bae leaned against the counter and watched them, waiting until they were out of earshot. "David said Emma was away with Mary Margaret. Where did she go if you guys can't leave Storybrooke?"

"They were pulled through a portal into the Enchanted Forest."

"Seriously? Guess I missed _that_ story."

He glanced back at his son. "You'd mentioned that Henry doesn't know who you are, didn't you?"

"No. Emma didn't tell him until... Well, _I_ shouldn't know he's my kid at this point, but I do, so I'm going to start making up for lost time as soon possible."

"Certainly you don't plan to simply drop that kind of news on him without his mother present?"

Bae frowned. "I didn't tell him last night, but I don't want to lie to him, Papa."

Rumplestiltskin tilted his head in thought, a vague vision dropping in pieces into his mind. He couldn't quite fit them together, but that was nothing new in Storybrooke. His visions never had behaved properly here even with the introduction of magic. "You'll make the right choice, Bae," he said instead and offered his son what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

"Rumple, do you have any hidden places it could have been put?" Belle called from the back.

"Not that it would have gone to," Rumplestiltskin answered as he followed the voice.

Belle was shuffling through a wardrobe he had back against the wall and Ruby was bent over a drawer. "You heard that they found the diamonds that make up fairy dust, didn't you?"

"No! We've been tied up most of the day," Belle answered. "I bet David is ecstatic!"

"More than. We're throwing the dwarves a party around dinner." Ruby glanced behind at the two men at the door. "You're all welcome, of course."

Rumplestiltskin opened his mouth to decline the offer. Belle would likely go, but he rarely attended these sorts of events. He didn't see the point. They tolerated him only a bit more than they did Regina and he hardly-

"Sure, we'll be there," his son's voice cut him off. Bae was grinning at the idea, or perhaps at the shocked look Rumple wore, he couldn't be sure.

"I'm not sure," the sorcerer tried again, but Belle was beaming.

"I think it's a perfect idea. You can treat me to that burger you promised."

Damn them. They did make a good team. Rumplestiltskin felt his resolve melt and he nodded. "We'll be there."

Belle's expression didn't dampen as she placed a kiss on his cheek. "We didn't find anything here, so I'm going to help Ruby look through the inn one more time. I'll see you there."

Rumple sank into his work chair as they left and tried again to glare at his still-grinning son. He really should give up. He was never going to be truly cross with him, no matter what. Something told him Bae knew that and wasn't above taking advantage of it.

"C'mon, Pop," he said with the smile growing wider, if possible.

"I hate these sorts of things."

"What? Human interaction?" Baelfire leaned against the work table. "Think about it. It's a celebration over finding fairy dust. My guess is that's something they've been looking for to get Emma and her mom back, right?"

"Yes," Rumplestiltskin confirmed hesitantly.

"Then you know who'll be there, right?"

_That_ was why he was grinning like a madman. "Henry."

"I mean, I know you've known him all his life, but don't you want to spend time with your grandson, Papa?"

There was a gleam of mischief in his eyes that just didn't stop and Rumple realized his son had quite a sneaky streak in him. A slow smile crept to his lips. "Yes, Bae, I believe I would."

* * *

The day couldn't get much better. They'd found the diamonds to make the fairy dust and it was only a matter of time before they got Emma and Mary Margaret back. On top of that, Henry had heard the news about their mysterious visitor from the night before. His name was Baelfire and he was Rumplestiltskin's son. The best part of that was that Ruby said that he'd probably drop by the celebration for a few minutes. That'd give Henry just enough time to pepper him with all the questions that he had come up with and didn't think he'd ever get the chance to ask.

The boy gripped the book in his hands hard. He'd always loved Baelfire's story and never thought he'd get to meet him in real life. The day just couldn't have been better unless Emma and Mary Margaret magically appeared back right then. That was really the only way.

"Easy there, kid," David laughed at him. "Don't want to think you're more excited about meeting this guy than the fact we're getting Emma and Mary Margaret back."

Henry beamed. "I always knew you would. I didn't doubt you for a second."

"Glad one of us had that kind of faith," David said as he ruffled his dark hair. The moment was interrupted as the front door opened, revealing the mystery man - Baelfire - and Mr Gold.

Henry nearly bounced over to him. "David says you're really Baelfire. Is that true?" he asked, running his words together so that both men turned to look at him with confusion in their eyes. Henry didn't know how he'd missed it the night before. There were many small traits that they shared that were impossible to overlook now. Their eyes were almost identical, and they wore the same startled, not-so-believable guiltless expression. He grinned and offered a wave to the shop owner. "Hey, Mr Gold!"

Baelfire choked out a laugh, his expression softening considerably as he worked his way through Henry's run-on question. "That's me. And you're Henry."

"I didn't tell you that."

"People talk," he answered easily. "Is that the infamous book I keep hearing about?"

People must talk a lot if he'd heard all of that since the night before. Henry grinned widely and nodded. "Yeah. You're in it too."

"Am I?" he asked, shooting a look towards his father out of the corner of his eye. "Can you show me?"

"Sure! Mr Gold's in it too, but the only picture of him is super dark and hard to recognize." He risked a glance at the elder man as the three of them slipped into a booth. "I didn't recognize you at first because of it."

"I look much different in our world than I do here," Mr Gold answered.

"Your eyes were different," Henry agreed and flipped the book open to one of the first pages following his grandparents' wedding that had been interrupted by his adopted mother. It showed Rumplestiltskin with his face pressed against the bars, golden eyes wild and mouth stretched into a crazed grin that almost brought a giggle leaping off the page.

"When did they toss you in prison, Papa?" Baelfire asked, though he hardly sounded surprised about it.

"Oh, a few months before the curse was cast. I let them toss me in, Bae. I needed to be there when we were taken to secure a few details."

"Of course," the younger man chuckled before turning back to Henry. "So where am I in this thing?"

"Here," the boy answered, flipping nearly to the front and pointing at the full page picture of a teenage Baelfire. "It says that they tried to send you off to war but your dad took on the Dark One's curse to save you."

"That's in there?" Mr Gold asked, suddenly a bit more interested than he had been.

"Yeah. See?"

He flipped the page to show a dagger that read _Rumplestiltskin _clearly scrawled across it and he went a little pale. "Who all has read this?"

Henry drew a blank. "Uh... A few people maybe? Regina read it cover to cover when she took it, and I think my mom has. Archie maybe? Most people just look up their own stories when they ask to read it. Why?"

"That's a very special knife there, Henry," Mr Gold explained slowly, tapping the page in the book with his finger.

"Did it come over?"

A knowing, thin smile crossed the pawn shop owner's lips, but he didn't confirm or deny it. Instead, Baelfire pulled the book to him, skimming over the page and a half or so that covered their story.

"I was going to ask, if you don't mind, how you two got separated. It says in there that he lost you and that's what set him on the search to find the Land Without Magic."

Baelfire and Mr Gold exchanged a look. Henry was pretty sure he'd never seen Mr Gold look unsure of... well, _anything_, really. The man ran the whole town. Sure, Regina was mayor, but there was no question in Storybrooke who really pulled the strings. He had every reason to be confident, so to see him shrink back just a little at the topic was strange.

Mr Gold's son cleared his throat, speaking slowly and carefully, confirming that Henry had wandered into some kind of dangerous territory. "I was just a kid, nearly fifteen, and I was...ah… a little freaked out by what the Dark One's curse did to my dad." Mr Gold wouldn't meet his eyes when he glanced over. "So I went to the Blue Fairy for help. She gave me a magic bean that would have carried us here so that his curse couldn't follow."

"What happened?" Henry asked, leaning forward on the table and fully intrigued. David had told him a few stories that weren't in the book, but he hadn't heard many others. He wanted to hear them all. He wanted to know everything about the place his family was from.

Baelfire paused, looking as uncomfortable as his dad now. He was trying to catch the elder man's eye, but Mr Gold's gaze was fixated on the salt and pepper shakers like his life depended on it. His son sighed. "We made a deal and Papa broke it. I went through alone," he said quietly.

Henry felt his heart sink. He'd always pictured their story, vague as it was, as a search for a child lost, not abandoned. He knew what it felt like to be abandoned, but something in Baelfire's voice indicated that there'd been nothing noble about his father letting him go. It hadn't been a sacrifice so he could have his best chance at a better life, but a true and honest abandonment. Henry had felt that way once too before he'd found Emma. Then she'd stayed and they'd built something between them that he wouldn't give up for the world. He risked a glance back at Baelfire. "But you came looking for him. Something must have changed."

"I was really angry for a lot of years," he answered. "_Really_ angry, but then I learned some things about my papa and I _had_ to come back. I had to make sure he..." Baelfire paused and Mr Gold's eyes were fixated on him now. "He crossed worlds for me. I'd do the same."

Henry grinned widely as he watched the infamous Mr Gold melt at his son's words. Baelfire looked entirely uncomfortable and cleared his throat. "So that's where I stand," he muttered, though Henry was certain that he was talking to Mr Gold and not him.

"So... that was when he first became the Dark One, right?" Henry asked. "That was a really long time ago, wasn't it?"

"About three hundred years," Mr Gold confirmed quietly, his voice barely controlled.

"I get why he's not really old, but what about you, Baelfire? Mr Gold, did you cast some sort of spell on him?"

"Nah," Baelfire answered. "I spent some time in Neverland."

Henry's eyes lit up. "Neverland? Like Peter Pan and Tinker Bell and Captain Hook? Did you fight pirates? Did you see the crocodile? Did Hook really only have one hand? Were the Darlings-"

"Hey kid, slow it down," David's sudden voice chuckled from behind. "It's getting late. Maybe this story should wait, huh?"

The thought of sleep sent cold chills down his spine. The nightmares were only getting worse and the candle hadn't helped. "I'm not tired, David. I'm good for at least another hour or two." Or five. No one seemed to notice that he was sipping on coffee rather than hot chocolate tonight.

"I don't think I'm going to last that long, buddy," Baelfire said and he did look tired. They hadn't been there all that long, but the circles under his eyes made him look a little sick.

"Are you okay?"

"Oh yeah. Just a little under the weather is all."

He shifted to stand, Mr Gold having already slid out of the booth, and Henry felt his heart sink. "Can I hear the story tomorrow?"

Baelfire laughed and reached forward, ruffling his hair. "Sure, buddy. Anytime."

* * *

Bae had fallen to sleep almost instantly when they'd returned last night, but had risen earlier than Rumplestiltskin remembered being regular and had said that he didn't want to miss his son's visit if Henry should show up at the shop. That morning did include a visit from Henry - and Regina, who was much less welcome than her adopted son and promptly ignored by her former mentor for both of their sakes - bouncing around the little pawn shop and hanging on Bae's every word about Neverland. The Blue Fairy was busy turning the raw stones found in the mines into something useful and the boy was in a holding pattern, waiting to find out when they could bring his mother and grandmother back.

Bae spoke honestly and openly about his time in Neverland - Rumple hadn't known his son had been trapped there at the time. If he had he would like to think he'd have had him back much earlier, despite the fear his father brought up in him - and Henry asked questions and searched through his book. Rumplestiltskin went about his business as usual, but listened as his son and grandson interacted with such ease that it set a strange sort of feeling loose in him. He thought it might be peace, but that was silly. The Dark One didn't know peace, not even with such bright lights to push everything back.

"So Peter Pan is a bad guy?" Henry demanded, not quite believing it.

"Yep. Worst I've ever seen," Bae answered and Rumple felt his eyes on him. He'd warned him of that many years before, but now his son knew first hand the kind of horrors Pan could bring about. He also knew _why_ his papa hated him as much as he did.

Rumplestiltskin was reaching for an antique piece that needed to be repaired when his cell rang, Belle's name flashing across it. "Hey," he greeted.

"Hey. You busy?"

"A bit, but I have a moment. Henry dropped by to chat with Bae."

There was a pause at the other end. "Has he told him yet?"

The shop owner glanced over and limped back to his office before answering. "Not yet, no. He decided that he wanted to wait until Emma gets back."

"Ah," Belle answered noncommittally. "I actually called because I needed to ask you something. Ruby never found her cloak and she... well she broke out of the freezer that they had set up for her last night. David's trying a cell at the sheriff's office to keep her, but people seem to be catching wind of it. Billy showed up dead this morning and they think Ruby did it. People are in a panic."

"News travels quickly here."

"I've noticed. Could you... Is it possible to enchant something like her cloak was?"

Rumplestiltskin closed his eyes, going through his mental inventory of potions and quick spells. "Things work so differently here," he sighed. "Not before tonight."

"Okay. David's brother's father seems to be causing all the trouble. We may have to secretly move her to the library."

"I might be able to help with that," Rumplestiltskin offered.

"I'm not sure Ruby would be happy owing you a favour, Rumple..."

"Who said anything about that? The look on George's face when he loses will be payment enough. I never like him."

The curtain separating the front and the back pulled back and instead of Bae or even Henry, Regina poked her head in. He glared until she sank back again and he sighed. "I'll be over in just a bit," he promised Belle before hanging up, finding Regina easing her way back in again. "What _do_ you want, dearie?" he snapped, his time causing her to flinch. Good.

Regina glared, even through her discomfort. "I see your son's return hasn't done anything for you."

"It's done plenty, but there's no need for you to reap the benefits. What do you want?"

The dark haired woman pursed her lips together thoughtfully. "Henry has been having nightmares."

"Alright?"

Her expression grew tighter. "He says that he's in a burning room."

"Children have nightmares, Regina. Surely you know that by now."

"That leave burns on them when they wake?" she snapped.

Rumplestiltskin froze at that. "No," he answered, not bothering to say more as he brushed past her and into the shop's main room. "Henry, come here a moment?"

Both Henry and Bae looked up, startled by the abrupt beckoning. Slowly, his grandson made his way over, looking like he thought he might be in trouble. "Tell me about these dreams, Henry," Rumple said softly.

The tension eased a little. "I've had them most every night. The room's on fire and-"

The sorcerer reached out, skilled fingers gently but firm and he didn't miss the boy's wince. The skin was red and showed signs of a burn. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but it would get worse without defenses being built. "These aren't dreams, Henry," he said as he turned to make a grab for a bag beneath the display counter. "What you're describing is a side effect of a Sleeping Curse."

"You can cure it, right, Papa?" Bae asked, worry filling his voice.

"No, I'm afraid not," Rumplestiltskin answered, shooting another glare in Regina's direction. It was _her_ fault that his grandson was enduring this. "But I can help you to control it."

Henry's eyes were wide as Rumple draped the charm around his neck. "Once you control it, there's no need to be frightened."

Regina frowned. "And what's the charge? Nothing comes for free."

"You couldn't afford it, Regina," he answered sharply, but his tone softened as he looked back to his son, then to his grandson. "But this is for Henry. This one is on me."

He didn't miss Bae's smile. His son was proud of him for something, but he hardly knew what. What had he expected when it came to his grandson?

* * *

When Baelfire had decided to let Regina cast the spell so that he could save his family, he hadn't known what to expect. He hadn't really had a chance to ask Emma what life had been like in Storybrooke before he showed up. What he really hadn't expected, though, was how his papa interact with it all. Oh, he'd been on Storybrooke for a bit before everything had gone to hell (or Neverland, in their case), but while he was certain that he was earlier in the timeline here, he hadn't seen his papa unleash his temper on anyone yet. He'd jabbed at a few, certainly, but the man that had nearly beaten the doctor into the ground outside of Granny's inn was not the same that had gone out of his way to offer to help Ruby. Sure, he said he was getting something out of it, but it was still a step in the right direction, and earlier than he'd braced himself for.

Henry had gone home with Regina while Bae and Rumplestiltskin joined David and Ruby in the sheriff's office. David had immediately wanted Rumplestiltskin to affirm that he was not expecting any sort of payment from Ruby for helping and when he confirmed that, he asked again. That's when Bae's papa had rolled his eyes and repeated his reasoning about the former king George. David's lips had thinned out as if he were trying not to laugh and the two had begun a discussion over what was practical.

They were still several hours away from sunset, but Ruby looked nervous. Bae leaned against the bars beside the opened door and she looked up at him. "Crazy place, huh?"

"I've seen worse," he assured her. "How're you holding?"

"A man died last night. A good man."

Bae's brows knit. "That doesn't mean you had anything to do with it."

"You didn't see him," she cut him off, eyes darting so that they wouldn't make contact with anyone else. "The wolf killed him. There's no way a human would have done that."

The phone in his pocket started buzzing and Bae offered her a smile. "We'll figure it out," he assured her as he slid the phone open. "Yeah?"

"Neal. I've been trying to get ahold of you for _days_."

A cold, painful knot settled deep inside of him. "Tamara?"

* * *

TBC

Notes: Many, many thanks to the reviews. You guys make me smile every time I get one in my inbox. Thanks so much :D Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Next time - Chapter Five: The Lies We Tell Ourselves, where Ruby gets advice from an unexpected source, Bae struggles with his own nightmares, and Henry talks to Bae about his father.


	6. The Lies We Tell Ourselves

**Chapter Five: The Lies We Tell Ourselves**

By the time that Baelfire had managed to get himself back down the the US, he'd hoped he was over Emma Swan. He found that he could get lost in the city, dive into the droves of people and no one could tell the difference. He'd become quite good at blending in by that point in his life. He looked like one of them and he had fooled them all. Every time Emma's face made its way into a dream or something reminded him of her, he'd just remembered what August had told him. She was a link to a past he was very much trying to avoid and he'd told himself he could forget her.

Somewhere along the way, the lie had taken root and others had been piled in to help it grow, but then Emma had shown up and shattered what he'd thought was his perfectly constructed little world. The lies that had become his truths were revealed and everything was turned on his head. Magic was real and he was still very much in love with the woman that hadn't known she was a princess.

Looking back, he wouldn't have changed it for all the worlds, but that didn't help him in that very moment when part of that lie that he hadn't known had been fed to him came around and he had to face it.

"Tamara?" Bae managed to choke out.

"You left without saying a word. I thought something had happened. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah I'm okay." He'd forgotten about her. How could he have forgotten about his crazed grandfather's evil minion, also known as his former - not so former? - fiance? Dread set deep, clawing in and burrowing down as she continued to speak.

"When you didn't show up for dinner last night I called and you didn't answer, so I went by your place and you weren't there. Your office said you just didn't show up. Neal, what's going on?"

He glanced over to where Rumplestiltskin and David had been discussing the options for moving Ruby to a place where she couldn't hurt anyone that night, but his papa was watching him carefully even as David prattled on. This keen eyes knew something was wrong, he could tell, and he tried for a smile and managed more of a grimace. "I had a bit of a… family issue."

"Family issue? I thought you said you didn't _have_ any family."

"Well, when I said that I didn't think I'd ever see them again," Bae answered, trying to crush the guilt he felt for sidestepping the situation. This was the woman who shot him - maybe not yet, but that shouldn't matter - and stole his son away. She'd also been lying to him. She'd never loved him, never even cared. He had been a means to an end and a gullible one at that.

"Neal, what's really going on? Where are you?"

"Maine." That was vague enough. He'd given her directions to Storybrooke in his own timeline. She didn't have that now.

"Listen, I'm going to come up there-"

"It's my dad," Bae cut her off in a hushed tone, his father's attention fully on him by this point. "Just… I need a few days. Can you give me that? Just to sort it out?"

"You said you never wanted to see your dad again."

"I know," he breathed, "but… I need this."

There was silence on the other end and for a moment he thought she might argue. Tamara couldn't come to Storybrooke while they were trying to figure out how to help a werewolf. _That_ would go over well. He should have thought to call her or something to have headed this off, but he hadn't. He'd been so focused on getting back to the people he loved that he hadn't even thought about it.

"Okay," she said at last. "You'll call me, though? Let me know how things are?"

"Sure."

"I love you."

"You too," he mumbled and hung up quicker than he'd known possible. His papa shot him an inquisitive look and Bae shook his head. "I'll explain later."

Rumplestiltskin quirked an eyebrow but said nothing. Instead he turned back to Ruby. "Shall we?"

Bae moved closer and Ruby hesitantly stepped out, glancing at David. He gave her an encouraging nod and they were gone in a cloud of swirling magic.

When Baelfire had been young, he had hated magic. He had hated what the curse had done to his father and what accepting a magic bean from the Blue Fairy had done to his life. He hated Neverland and Pan's shadow that was his endless tormentor until he'd made use of it. But then he'd escaped, and for a while his life was blissfully magic-free.

He couldn't pinpoint exactly where the change had occurred. He knew that when his papa had shown up at his apartment in Manhattan he'd still been angry and spiteful. Granted, that had been fueled by his immediate reliance in magic to wipe everything out. After their second reunion, Bae was fairly certain that had to do more with not knowing what to say and going back to his old comforts.

It didn't really matter where it had happened specifically, but somewhere in between Manhattan and his papa's death, Bae had become a little more accepting of magic. Enough, apparently, to produce some of his own. He really did need to carve out some time to broach that subject, as little as he actually wanted to.

"Wow," Ruby breathed as the magic faded and she nearly tilted off balance. "That was... Do you do that all the time?"

Rumplestiltskin gave her a thin smile. "From time to time."

The werewolf turned on Bae. "Can _you_ do that?"

Baelfire sputtered. "Uh... Not usually. I've only done it once, and not like that."

That caught his father's attention, but he was discreet, thankfully, and left it where it was for the time. "You've been carried by magic before. Everyone in Storybrooke has. You just don't remember."

"When the curse brought us here," Ruby said thoughtfully.

A back door that led to another part of the library opened and Belle entered, arms full of various lengths of chains that she carried awkwardly in. "It's a little unnerving that these were even here," she said, glancing at Rumplestiltskin. "What _did_ Regina use the library for?"

"Some things are better left to the imagination," Bae's father said with a grimace at the idea.

"Will these hold?" Belle asked, handing the chains over.

"Yeah. They should hold. I hope." She looked them over. "Thank you, by the way. I guess it's not every day you find out your friend is a monster."

"You're not a monster," Belle answered easily and reached a hand out to her friend. "We know that."

"Crowd's six blocks away. Looks like David's staying at the station didn't fool anyone," Granny said as she entered with her crossbow. She turned a sharp look at Rumplestiltskin. "You couldn't have made her another cloak and saved us all this trouble?"

Bae watched his father's carefully controlled expression. "Most people would simply say thank you for the help they're receiving. This is hardly my fault, and not even my business really. Perhaps I should-"

"Rumple, please," Belle said softly and the prickly demeanor softened almost immediately.

"You made her cloak?" Bae asked while attentions were turned.

"Many years ago. Apparently Granny still holds some grudge over the price for it."

Baelfire waited for a moment, but realized he wasn't getting anymore from him. Instead, when Rumplestiltskin was sure that the others were well and truly distracted, he leaned closer. "Who was on the phone?"

His shoulders slumped and Bae loosed a long sigh. "I was so busy trying to get here that I didn't check exactly where I was. I should have taken care of it before I left."

Dark eyes the same colour of his own grew worried. "Are you in some sort of trouble, son?"

"If she comes here, maybe."

"She? A girlfriend?"

"Fiancé. It's really complicated. Needless to say I'm really glad I know she's not the right one at this point. _Really_ glad."

"She's not coming here is she? This would be-"

"I know. Believe me I know."

"I'm going to go help David. He's trying to find Billy's real murderer," Granny said.

"Bae," Rumplestiltskin said softly, shooting a glance towards Ruby, "why don't you and Belle go make sure all the doors and windows are secure?"

Bae and Belle exchanged a glance, but it was Baelfire who moved first. He didn't know what his papa was planning, but he would choose to trust him in this.

* * *

Ruby watched Belle and Baelfire leave and she turned an apprehensive look back towards the Dark One. Belle had told her that he wanted nothing from her in return for the bit of help he was giving, but she couldn't imagine why. Sure, he'd said that he wanted to see the look on George's face when he lost, but that didn't seem to match. He was about to ask for something more. She knew it.

Gold's thin lips stretched into a knowing smile. "Don't be a fool, dearie. They'll rip you to shreds."

She froze. "I'm sorry, I don't.."

"Sure you do," he answered easily, the smile never fading. "I see the future, remember? Yours has the potential to be particularly bleak if you walk out that door."

Ruby's eyes darted to the floor. "It's what I deserve, isn't it?"

"Why?"

Her eyes darted back up to meet his. "I've _killed_ people, Mr Gold."

He shrugged. "As have many in this town. You're hardly a cold blooded murderer to be feared. Precautions may need to be made, but sacrificing yourself to a mob is hardly the answer."

"Those people are going to find me here. They'll break the door down and if Belle or your son get in the way they'll hurt them too. You don't want that."

"Seems like that makes them the monsters," Gold mused, hardly seeming phased by the idea. He glanced back towards where Belle and Baelfire had disappeared to and continued quietly. "Many people from our world would like to classify each and every one of us as good or evil. While I'm sure certain members of our little society here would quite enjoy a life where things were so... neat, I'm afraid neither this world nor ours is quite so black and white. Are you a villain, Ruby?"

"I've killed-"

"That's not what I asked, is it, dearie?"

Ruby stared at him, not quite sure what he wanted her to say. She'd killed Peter. She'd killed Billy. She _was_ a monster if there ever was one, but villains enjoyed the carnage, didn't they? Evil revelled in pain and suffering. All she wanted was to make sure people were safe. "No, but-"

He tutted, a glimpse of his old impish self showing through the human facade. "Not everything is black and white."

"What if the mob hurts someone else?"

"They'll be on their way soon enough. Their easily enough riled, but they'll give. You just have to know where their pressure points are."

Ruby watched him as he turned, the question tumbling from her lips. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Are you a villain?"

Rumplestiltskin chuckled. "Oh yes, dearie, very much so."

* * *

He'd known there was an ulterior motive to all of this, but he'd foolishly assumed it had been to set up David to take the fall when Ruby changed and was cornered into defending herself. Rumplestiltskin knew enough about werewolves that the key was self-acceptance. Regardless of if the idiots of this town tried to corner her or not, as a wolf fully in control she would have been able to come out of it easily and George - who had somehow been given a position of something akin to power - would have been forced to slink back to whatever office he'd chosen for himself and diddle the rest of his days away in idle work fit for a dethroned monarch. It seemed like such a lovely end to him.

What Rumple hadn't been able to add into the equation was Jefferson's damn hat. He hadn't known about it until Belle called late after she'd sent him home. It was hard to believe that anyone could send the Dark One on his way, but Belle did a fine job of it. The mob had mysteriously dissipated and Ruby had been set back to a place where she could clearly see herself. Everything was supposed to have worked out well at that point and that was the only reason that he'd left her alone in it while he ushered Bae - still a bit worn down from the excess dark magic that his father was still pulling from him bit by bit - back to the house and to bed with a promise from Belle that she would call if anything happened.

In hindsight, perhaps he should have known that David had the hat. Snow and Emma had been pulled through a portal, and what else but Jefferson's hat could have made a portal within Storybrooke? While it had been useless to Rumple in the Enchanted Forest, he'd since brought magic to the Land Without Magic and now the hat could travel between given the right magical boost.

And if it hadn't been burned to a crisp.

Belle had sounded warn when she explained that George had gotten ahold of the hat, using the incident with Ruby as a distraction. He'd taken her cloak and had killed Billy, all to make sure that David's hopes were destroyed. Even the Dark One had to admit it was a little disgusting, but he was pretty sure that's because he was channeling his love's own emotions. She did always want to hear him trying to be better, after all, and a decent person would admit that it was a terrible act.

She had assured him that she was stepping into her apartment while on the phone with him and that Ruby, newly found cloak around her shoulders, had gone with a very emotionally distraught David to lock George up. She was safe, and that was enough for now. While the others would remain upset, Rumplestiltskin would simply be irked that he'd missed a piece of the puzzle. It was just another reminder that his vision rarely worked well in this land and that he didn't dare rely on them.

A soft knock startled him out of this thoughts and he glanced towards the bedroom door. Bae had been asleep for several hours now and he was about to make a go at it, but the sound caught his attention just before the door cracked open and his son's face filled it. "Hear anything yet?"

"What are you doing up?"

He shrugged. "Heard you talking, thought I'd see if there was an update."

"I didn't wake you, did I?"

His son frowned and shook his head, running a hand through his hair as he spoke. "No, just looks like Henry's not the only one with lingering nightmares."

"Oh Bae," he breathed, moving to crawl out of bed. Baelfire motioned for him to stay put and he shuffled in, taking a seat on the bed. He was still half-asleep himself from the looks of him, and Rumplestiltskin felt a surge of what he was still trying to convince himself wasn't peace, even if he were trying to chase his sin's nightmares away. Bae had come to him. He still wasn't quite sure he wasn't the one dreaming. He'd wake eventually and find himself alone in this house or worse, alone in his castle having dozed off somewhere. He'd always avoided sleeping when he could just for that reason.

Bae offered him a lopsided smile and a shrug. "It's fine. Makes it easy when I can walk in here and prove it was just a dream. What'd Belle have to say?"

"We'll have to find another way to get Henry's mother back. Apparently David was banking on a portal jumper's hat and George destroyed it."

"Hell… Do you think I changed something by being here?"

"I don't know. I don't know what you've changed."

"I wasn't even here for all of this. What if I just screwed them into having to stay in the Enchanted Forest?"

"It's hard to say, but we'll find a way to bring them home. I promise, Bae. I know what it's like to be separated from your family."

Bae offered him a smile and reached for his hand, squeezing it. "I know, Papa."

Rumplestiltskin tried not to cling too desperately to the hand in his own, but he was pretty sure that it was a lost cause. He cleared his throat. "So, what were you dreaming about?"

"Umm… You, actually. About the day you died." Dark eyes met dark and Bae looked nervous. "Except it wasn't… You know how dreams are. They get all turned around and meshed into themselves. I ah... In the dream, we were all standing out on the main street just like we did when it all happened and you were there, but somehow I knew that it was my fault. I'd screwed something up and it was my fault."

"Bae…"

He shrugged. "What's done is done. I can't undo it, but worse, I wouldn't. Does that make me a terrible person? I might have just wrecked multiple lives. Mary Margaret and David were pregnant when I left, but if she's stuck over there with no way to get back, I may have inadvertently erased their second child, not to mention trapped Emma on the other side." He pulled in a deep breath. "But if I hadn't come, you'd still be dead and Emma and Henry would still be stuck in… wherever they went without any memories of any of us. I don't regret it for a minute. Even if I messed something up, I still have a chance to fix it in a different way. I didn't have a chance there. This was it."

"Now you know," Rumple murmured and when Bae shot him a questioning look he reached his free hand to the side of his son's face. "Now you know why I could never regret taking on my curse. It saved your life, Bae, even if I was such a fool - such a coward - as to let you go. If I'd never taken it on none of that would have mattered. I'd have lost you forever. Our actions always have consequences, even if made for the best of reasons."

He could feel the emotions welling up so strongly that they were bound to burst, but he tried to hold onto them, but Bae reached forward suddenly and wrapped his arms around so tight that a sob broke free and he returned the embrace. "I'm so sorry, Bae," he whispered over and over again and his son only tightened his grip, burying his face in the crook of his shoulder and he heard the younger man heave a sob of his own.

"I know, Papa," he whispered after a moment, voice broken and full of emotion. "Me too. I'm sorry too. I love you."

They sat there like that, neither man willing to let go of the other. It didn't matter how much pain one had caused the other at any given time, they were there now and they'd come looking for each other and Rumplestiltskin would never let go again.

* * *

"You look like you're having a rough go of it."

Henry looked up to find Baelfire standing by the booth and he set his mug of hot cocoa down and swallowed hard. The morning had been a whirl and he was supposed to be at school right then. He'd gone to the bus, but just as he picked his foot up to take the first step he'd changed his mind. He couldn't go to that place with memories of Mary Margaret - and therefore memories of Emma - around every corner.

"Jefferson's hat was burnt up last night, but we _did_ find out that Emma and Mary Margaret are alive."

Baelfire's eyes lit at that and he slipped into the booth opposite of Henry. "That's great. How'd you find out?"

"The necklace that your dad gave me? It actually made it so I could talk to someone else in the fiery room. Her name is Aurora and she's with my mom and Mary Margaret."

"So they're trying to get back?"

"Yeah. Regina and David think maybe I can talk to her again. They're going to talk to your dad about it and see if he'll help."

"Of course he will."

Henry tilted his head to the side a bit. "You have a lot of faith in him, huh?"

"I guess I do."

"I never knew my dad at all. Emma said he was a firefighter and that he died. Sometimes I like to pretend I can talk to him. Is that weird?"

"I don't think so," Baelfire murmured softly. A slow smile crept to his lips. "I had plenty of conversations with my dad while we were apart."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I just hope yours are nicer than mine were."

Henry laughed. "But you guys are good now, right?"

"We're getting there, yeah." He grinned. "So what is your dad like?"

Henry knew how absurd the question was, but he had to admit that Baelfire won major points for being an adult willing to play along. Maybe that's why the next statement slipped from his tongue a little easier. "Kinda like you."

Baelfire froze, eyes wide and staring. For a moment Henry thought he'd said something wrong. He hadn't meant to. He liked Baelfire a lot. He'd always imagined that if his dad were still alive that he'd be something like him. He'd looked for him too when he'd looked for Emma. It made sense now why he hadn't found anything.

"Thanks," Baelfire breathed after a moment, and looked like he might say more but his cell phone rang and he offered an apologetic smile as he slipped out of the booth.

Granny appeared in his place. "Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

Henry plastered the most innocent look he could muster across his face. "Um...no?"

"Uh-huh. David got a call from them and he's been calling around looking for you."

"Oh," the boy answered softly.

"Is he at the station?" Baelfire asked as he covered the receiving end of his cell phone with one hand. "I'm heading right by there. I'll make sure he gets there and doesn't get distracted on his way."

Henry started to protest that he could walk himself over to the station without supervision - he _was_ eleven afterall - when Granny nodded. "Thank you."

Baelfire grinned. "Just a second," he promised and turned back to his conversation. "Yeah, I get that, Tamara, but this is important. No, there's no reason for you to jump in the middle of this." He paused, looking like he was resisting to urge to roll his eyes with everything he had. "I know. Me too. I'll call you later, okay? I have to help with something."

Henry raised an eyebrow. "Who's Tamara?"

"A complication," Mr Gold's son answered and pulled his wallet out to hand Granny enough to pay for the coffee he'd been drinking on and Henry's own hot chocolate. "Let's get you to your grandpa. No reason to have David worrying about you too."

They walked out of the diner together and turned down the street. "Is she someone you know? Is she from over there too?"

"Where? The Enchanted Forest? No."

"You have to give me _something_."

Baelfire chuckled. "And why is that?"

Henry grinned in return. "Because I can help."

"Who says there's anything to help with?" he asked, reaching out and ruffling the boy's hair as they stepped through the doors of the Town Hall. Then his voice turned serious. "You don't need to get anywhere near Tamara, okay?"

"Is she a bad person?"

The elder man seemed to think on this a second as they rounded the corner and walked towards the sheriff's office. "Yeah, Henry, I guess she is."

David came out of the office. "Hey. You were supposed to be in school this morning."

Henry grimaced. "I was going to, but then... Well..."

"I know," David said with a forced smile and his grandson knew he did. This had been rough on them both. Blue eyes flickered up though and caught Baelfire's. "Thanks for bringing him by. I guess you know about what happened to Henry's mother and grandmother."

"I hear they're back in our land. Any leads on how to get to them yet?"

"Well, maybe. Henry, you've been wanting to help, right?"

"Definitely!"

"Regina is supposed to be talking to your dad," David directed at Baelfire, "to see if he can help. Apparently Regina's mother is alive over there and she's bad news if she managed to get through. She's trying to stop Emma and Mary Margaret from getting home."

"Cora," he breathed and David looked startled.

"You know her?"

"Heard of her. Briefly."

"We could use any help we could get," David assured him.

"I have to run by somewhere pretty quick, but I'll meet you guys at Pop's shop when I'm done."

"You think Mr Gold will help?"

Baelfire grinned. "Yeah, he'll help.

Henry returned the smile and waved as he walked out, finally turning to David. "I like him."

"Yeah? You're a pretty good judge of character."

"I know."

* * *

Bae hadn't thought that his plans for the day would include a trip out into the forest. He'd hoped to spend it with Henry, if he were honest, but wants and wishes didn't make things happen without actions to back them up. He'd decided that Emma needed to be there when their son found out who he was - it was only fair to her - so getting her back was top priority. Especially if she was stuck over there any longer because of him.

He'd spent enough time tracking and avoiding Lost Boys in Neverland to know how to find someone, especially if they were not particularly good at covering their tracks. Finding the old, seemingly abandoned trailer in the forest wasn't too hard when he knew there was actually someone living there and followed that trail directly to him. August wasn't as good at hiding when someone had at least a vague idea where to look.

Baelfire pulled in a deep breath, letting it out again through his nose slowly. August had caused him a lot of trouble over the years. He'd been the one to leave Emma when she needed him most and he'd convinced Bae to do the same. He'd stolen money from him, lied to his papa, and caused a hell of a lot of trouble at every turn. Somehow, though, Bae needed to find a way to put it behind him. He needed his help now. If he couldn't keep Tamara away from Storybrooke then he at least needed to know every side of the story.

Knuckles tapped hard on the door, sounding like they might go through it if any more force was given. He waited, listening for any sound from within. There was a faint scratching, like someone shifting around, but no answer came and Bae knocked again. Hard. "Open up, August! I know you're in there. I can hear you."

There was a bit more scraping and he heard locks being undone. The door eased open then and August appeared. He stood wide-eyed, though that may have been all he could do in his puppet state, and his voice held more shock than Bae thought possible. "Neal?"

Calm and collected, he'd promised himself. For Emma, for Henry, and for everyone in Storybrooke that he cared about. It all washed away though when he saw his face and the anger that had boiled up on more than one occasion rushed back in as he reared back and landed a solid blow to the other man's face, sending August staggering back.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Hope everyone had a good weekend! Thanks for all the lovely reviews! They make me smile so much when they come through. I try to get back to you on them, but sometimes there's just not enough hours in the day. I'm so sorry. Know that I definitely read them and appreciate them.

Next time - Chapter Six: Into Dreams, in which Bae finally gets his honest chat with August, Regina seeks help in defeating her mother, and Rumplestiltskin receives confirmation on a theory about his son.


	7. Into Dreams

**Chapter Six: Into Dreams**

He hadn't meant to hit him - or, at least, he hadn't given himself permission to hit him - but now that he had it felt good. August reeled back, wooden hands going to his nose and the door to the trailer swung open as he stumbled. Bae stood there, his glare steady and lips thinned as the younger man tried to balance himself. He seemed to try to move his nose, checking to see if it might be broken, but not even enchanted wood had quite that much give. He finally gave up and turned blue eyes on the man that had laid the blow. "Neal," he said slowly, hand still hovering by his face. "Guess I deserved that."

"And more. Not sure which that one was for: stealing my money that was meant to get to Emma or impersonating me."

August went a little pale, if it were possible, at the second statement. "You've been to see Rumplestiltskin? I thought you hated him."

"Things change. We need to talk."

He moved back and Bae took that as an invitation to enter and did. There wasn't much to the little trailer that August currently called home, but the writer had made his way so far. He moved stiffly towards the other end of the trailer and his irritable guest took a seat on what might have once been a couch. "You're lucky that no termites have found you out here."

"You're hilarious, you know that?"

"Yeah, I know."

"What do you want, Neal? Emma's in town."

"No, Emma is in the Enchanted Forest." Bae watched the other man's expression slowly change and a thought occurred to him. August had known Emma was there, meaning he'd spent time with her. Meaning he knew that Henry was his son. Well, there was another reason behind that punch. "You could have told me I had a kid, you asshole."

August took a step back, like he thought Bae might stand and take another swing. If he hadn't needed his help, he might have. Slowly, the wooden man raised his hands. "Emma had to break the curse. I _told_ you that."

"I could have helped her, you know. If I'd known about Henry I never would have-"

"There's your answer." He sighed, leaning against a counter. "Is that what you're here for? To point out every crappy thing I've done to you? I warned you I was bad at saying no to temptation."

"I need your help."

"What?"

"You know someone that I need information about. At least, you know her in ways I don't. Tamara Grey."

August froze at the name. "What about her?"

"I'm asking you."

He seemed to think on it a moment and Bae could see the calculation in those wooden eyes. He'd been around deal making long enough to know what was coming next. "You and your dad are on good terms again?"

Bae only narrowed his eyes in response.

"Get him to change me back. I'll tell you everything I know about her."

"I'll talk to him."

"Convince him."

"I can't promise that, August. Pop does things his own way."

"He'll listen to you. Maybe you just haven't seen what I saw when he thought I was you. He really does love you."

"I know he does. I'll do my best."

"Good enough." August reached a wooden hand out and Bae took it, feeling the stiff fingers in his own and some of the anger at the younger man melted away. He'd done some pretty terrible things to Bae specifically, but this was an equally terrible fate in the end. Most people didn't wear the evidence of their sins for all the world to see.

"So how do you know her?"

"Let's start a little earlier. Before the Evil Queen cast her curse your father made a prophecy about Emma."

"That she'd be the savior, I know."

"Right. On her twenty-eighth birthday, she needed to go to Storybrooke. I was supposed to be the one to get her there, but... Well, I didn't live up to my end, I guess." He sighed, closing his eyes. "On her birthday, when I was supposed to be there to help her, I started turning to wood again. I started looking for help anywhere I could get it."

"Never occurred to you to just go help her?"

August snorted, but continued. "I went to this man that they called the Dragon. He was supposed to be able to heal anything. That's where I ran into Tamara. She said she had some rare form of cancer, but some stuff happened, I ended up going back a few days later for something and the Dragon was dead."

"You think she killed him?"

"Why? Do you? How do you know her?"

"Long story," Bae said as he stood. August hadn't been nearly as helpful as he'd hoped, but he'd provided some information at least. Tamara's affinity for attacking those with magic seemed to be a long running trend.

"C'mon," August said with a smile. "I told you my story, so-"

Bae stood. "So I'll talk to my papa. Maybe you'll even be able to work up the courage to see your own. Marco's looking for you."

That struck a nerve. "I can't let him see me like this."

"You'd be surprised what fathers are willing to overlook."

He looked down, the floor suddenly very interesting. "Yeah."

"Listen, I have somewhere to be, so I'll let you know what he says. You did some serious damage when you showed up pretending to be me."

"I know."

Bae paused at the door, his chest tightening. "What'd he say?"

"What?" August asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"My dad, when he thought you were me."

The wooden man grimaced as best he could. "He poured his soul into the apology," he said quietly.

Slowly, Bae nodded and handed him a spare cellphone. "Thanks. I'll do what I can for you, August. I'll be in touch."

* * *

He'd been torn when Belle had asked if he wanted to have lunch. Bae may have had time to spend with him, but Rumplestiltskin hadn't experienced that yet and he had a difficult time letting his son out of his sight. He had said that he was simply worried about delayed side effects of the spell that had sent him there, but they both knew that wasn't all if it, even if neither said so. Belle may have known that too when she'd invited Baelfire along as well, but he'd smiled and said he had a few things he needed to do that day and he'd drop by the shop later.

"You're thinking about him, aren't you?"

Rumple startled at Belle's soft voice and he found her smiling at him. She reached forward and took his hand in her own. "Yes, I am," he admitted softly. "I'm sorry."

She laughed, the sound pleasant and it warmed him. "Don't apologize. He's your son. He's been good for you, Rumple, even if it's just been a few days."

He felt himself echoing her smile and tightened his grip on her hands across the table. "How so, my dear?"

"Well, you went out of your way to help Ruby last night without anything in return."

"I told all of you: I can't stand George. He's irritating. It was enough to see him lose, even if not entirely."

"Really, Rumple?"

He offered her a smile. "Don't go thinking I've turned into some sort of philanthropist now. I shouldn't want to disappoint you any more than I already do."

"Rumple," she said softly. "You don't disappoint me. It's just... I know that you are better than what your curse makes you. Sometimes you just need others to help you see it too."

Granny appeared with two plates in her hands and offered a half hearted glare at Rumplestiltskin. "I don't know how you got them all to go away last night, but you may have saved Ruby's life."

"Hardly. She saved her own."

"I think Granny is trying to say thank you, Rumple," Belle whispered.

"Thank you," Granny ground out as she set the plates down. "I left off the extra charge for the pickles this time."

He could tell Belle was trying not to laugh and she did a fair job of holding it in until Granny had left. A giggle escaped her once the innkeeper was out of earshot and Rumple found himself smiling as well. "We have a complicated relationship," he explained. "As I do with most people."

Belle's smile didn't fade. "It took me a while to get to know you. They will too." She squeezed his fingers before letting go, eying the burger in front of her.

It was amazing, but without any cursed memories Belle was learning about the Land Without Magic one step at a time. Had she been any less clever, any less willing to learn she would have been entirely lost. But this was Belle. Brave, beautiful, inquisitive Belle. She viewed each experience as a story to be told and never forgot that others came with their own.

Rumple saw her eyeing the condiments as if she weren't entirely sure and he'd reached for the ketchup as a familiar presence made itself very well known in the diner. He resisted the urge to growl at her, but instead forced a thin smile as he turned.

"Gold, we need to talk," Regina said stiffly.

"Do we? Unless this has to do with Henry, I doubt that."

Regina blinked. "In a way it does."

Rumplestiltskin's dark eyes narrowed. He was going to have a tough time not snapping her neck if she was using his grandson - if she knew it or not - to try to manipulate him. "How so?"

"The necklace you gave Henry let him control the dream. He met someone in that Netherworld and she said that Emma and Snow are with her."

"Lovely. Your point?"

"My point is the person that is after them. Cora."

Rumple felt his world shift just a little. Cora. He hadn't heard the name in years, nor had he had reason to. "She was dead. You said you saw the body."

"Apparently you taught her well." She glanced past her former mentor and Belle stiffened at the brief gaze before it turned back. "She's on her way here. To Storybrooke. I don't think I need to remind you how most unpleasant that would be for both of us."

The Dark One sneered. "For you. I can handle Cora."

"That's not how she tells it."

Memories bubbled up in his mind. Magic and hatred and pain and betrayal swirled together in more than one spatting match between mentor and former student, but he knew the one she was referring to. There'd only been one time that they hadn't sidestepped each other in their particularly nasty game of chess and it had come to actual blows. A woman without her heart could land some deep and bloody hits to a man that had never been inclined to remove his own. That battle had made him think about it however briefly before Bae's face had drifted through his mind and he'd clung to the image like a drowning man to a raft. If he'd been anything less than what he was, it would have cost him his life.

Rumplestiltskin's dark eyes flickered to meet Regina's and his voice was low and controlled. "I won in the end."

"Maybe, but are you willing to risk it with people you care about being so close?" She was channeling her own fears, he could hear it in her voice. "Your son is in Storybrooke. Could you imagine what she'd do to him if she got her hands on-"

"Who is this woman?" Belle asked from her place.

"Someone you'll never have to meet," Rumplestiltskin answered immediately.

"Rumple..."

"Belle, it truly is best I keep you as far away from this as possible. I'll handle it." He didn't give her time to argue as he turned back to Regina. "How were you thinking about dealing with your dear mother?"

"If Henry can communicate a way to stop her..."

"I may have an idea. Belle, I'm sorry-"

"Don't. Go. We'll have our date when you're not saving Storybrooke."

Rumple snorted. "Hardly."

She smiled and slipped out of the booth, circling it and placed a kiss on his cheek. "You're a better man than it makes you," she whispered in his ear and for a moment he thought he might be able to believe it.

* * *

Regina couldn't help but be a little disgusted by Rumplestiltskin's so-called True Love. She hardly thought it was possible. After all, she'd sent the little bookworm to kiss him and steal his powers away and it hadn't worked. She'd certainly been head over heels enough that if he'd felt even half as strongly about her he would have been human again in no time. Instead he'd thrown her out and while the pretty little thing might think that something like True Love had reunited them, the Evil Queen knew better. All that had reunited them had been an angry portal jumper that felt owed where he wasn't. Foolish, really.

She'd grown up on stories about Rumple, even if she hadn't quite known it at the time. She knew that there was something between he and her mother with the way that she'd woven the most frightening of tales together about a man that could get anything he wanted and do anything that pleased him. He had power, Cora had told her daughter, and he wasn't afraid to use it. She hadn't been sure how true most of the stories were - Rumplestiltskin was never one to remind people of anything that made him seem anything less unless it suited him to be so - and that's why she'd been secretly relieved when he'd known exactly what she was referring to about the fight with Cora.

As far as Regina knew her mother and the teacher that they shared had only come to actual blows once and it had left them both beaten down. The fact that Cora was strong enough to injure the Dark One had been proof enough of her power and she'd kept a bit of his blood she had caught on a dagger - not his, she'd been reluctant to say - as her own reward. It was tinged with magic and she kept it in a vial on her person at all times as a reminder, she'd said, of what she was capable of.

Cora may not have frightened the Dark One, but she made him uneasy. Only an idiot would have thought otherwise. When they'd left the diner and started towards his shop where David would bring Henry he was silent. He'd convinced Belle to go back to her library and to stay away from it, but if Cora came through, there would be no place safe from her. They had to find a way to keep her out of Storybrooke for all of their sakes. More importantly, for the sakes of those that they loved.

"What do you have in mind?" Regina asked as she felt the vaguest tingle of blood magic as the lock clicked open for him.

"If Cora is standing in Emma and Snow's way of returning home they'll need to stun her and her magic."

"Squid ink? Rumple, your castle would have been destroyed with the curse. Any stores you had will be gone, even if they could get to it."

"I'm not sending them to my castle." He stopped then, dark eyes searching. "Bae?"

There was a rustling sound from the back and the curtain was pulled away as a young man entered from the back office. She had seen him very briefly before, but really hadn't had any interaction with him. She had been so fixated in finding a way to get Rumplestiltskin to help Henry with his nightmares that she hadn't given Baelfire the time of day.

Regina had never known her former mentor's son, nor really had an idea if what to expect, but now she couldn't imagine him any differently. He was a little broader than Rumple, though that was hardly difficult. He was perhaps an inch or two taller, but the eyes were where the resemblance couldn't be ignored. He grinned as he walked out, the same mischief dancing there. "Hey, Pop. Didn't hear you come in."

Rumplestiltskin's tense expression softened. "I suppose you know what is going on then."

"David said that you'd all be meeting here if you were willing to help. I knew you would."

Regina watched their interaction. He'd never said much about Baelfire. She wouldn't have even known about him save for one time that she'd dropped by his castle unannounced and found him in mourning over some old rag and a few trinkets. She'd been young and unsure of herself. She hadn't been a threat to him yet. Now, though, she wasn't sure what they were, but she watched her former mentor's protective walls seem to bend a little under his son's easy smile and they spoke lowly for a moment, just out of earshot. It certainly wasn't what she'd expected.

Though neither was the tinge of magic she felt from the younger - older? - man. It was faint, suppressed, and a bit strange, but she thought it could be _very_ powerful given the right circumstances or the right training. She'd never been as inclined to see the threads of magic that Rumplestiltskin was convinced made up everything in their world, but she could feel it, and as she approached the two men she thought she might even be able to touch it it was so strong. Surely Rumple had noticed.

"Regina," Baelfire greeted, though it might have been a question as well.

"Yes. That is my name. Is there a reason you're here?"

The question seemed to catch him off his guard a little. "I... Uh... Just wanted to help. Am I going to be in the way?"

"Of course not, Bae," Rumplestiltskin said quickly, but Regina snorted.

"I hardly see how you're going to help. You may have a bit of power swirling around you, but it's hardly trained for something like this."

He gaped at her and Rumple turned a glare in her direction. "What?" she asked with feigned innocence.

"That's a discussion for another time," her former teacher said, his voice leaving no room for argument.

The door opened behind them, promptly putting any discussion that might have happened to rest and Henry came bounding through the door. "You got him to help!" he cheered, and it took Regina a moment to realize his gratitude was directed at her.

A soft, hesitant smile stretched painted lips. "I told you I would, sweetie."

"So what's the plan? Tell me you guys have a plan."

"Mary Margaret and your mother are hardly helpless," Rumple said, his voice much gentler with Henry than it was with most anyone else. "We'll just need to lead them to the best tools to handle the problem at hand."

"Cora's pretty powerful, huh?"

The Dark One smiled. "Not as powerful as I am."

"Debatable," Regina snapped without thinking and she thought he might have rolled his eyes.

"Actually, it's not."

"We won't let anything happen to you, buddy," Baelfire said. "I promise."

Regina's adopted son grinned widely. "I was born to do this. I'm done reading about heroes. I want to be one."

"Let's get you settled," Regina cut in, picking up a blanket she'd brought in with her. It was one that had been on his bed at home longer than it hadn't. He was much too old for a security blanket - at least that's what he'd told her, at any rate - but she liked to think she could do something to comfort him. He'd run to her for comfort, but that seemed like so very long ago now.

"Thanks," he said with a forced smile as they moved towards the back room.

Rumplestiltskin got him settled onto the cot in the back - something she'd always wondered about, but had never bothered asking - and she watched carefully as her son settled in. She didn't like the idea of him going under any deeper than he would naturally, but Rumple had assured her that he'd be safe. As terrible as he could be, she didn't think he'd hurt Henry. He'd always been fond of him.

"You nervous?"

Regina turned, finding Baelfire standing next to her. "Should I be?"

"Probably not, but that doesn't mean you aren't." His eyes were fixated on Henry, unwavering.

"He's taken quite a shine to you."

His dark eyes turned to her now and a smile tilted his lips. "He's a special kid."

The words struck something and Regina's voice lowered to a whisper for privacy more than allowing Rumple his room to work. "You two aren't... Why are you so interested in him?"

A million scenarios swirled in her mind and she wondered if Rumple's fondness for the boy was only there until he could make use of him. Maybe they'd made a terrible mistake letting the Dark One send Henry into this Netherworld. Fear took hold and she was ready to demand everything be put on hold when Baelfire reached out to her, physically stopping her. "Hey, don't worry. I can't explain everything right now, but both Papa and I would protect Henry with our lives. You don't have to worry about either of us doing anything to hurt him."

"He's under," Rumplestiltskin said from his place.

"What now?" David asked.

The Dark One stood slowly. "Now we wait."

* * *

Bae thought he might slowly go mad if he had to wait any longer. He'd assured Regina that his papa knew what he was doing and Henry was safe, but that didn't mean that questions didn't creep into his mind and take hold. What if Henry became lost in this world? What if he never woke up?

Rumplestiltskin must have sensed his son's growing nervousness because he limped his way to him and put a reassuring hand against his arm. "Henry will be just fine, Bae. You know I wouldn't let anything hurt him, don't you?"

"You can't protect him from everything, Pop. Neither can I. It's just..." His father offered him a knowing smile and all the fights and frustrations over how he'd coddled Bae as a boy came rushing forward. "I get it now, you know?"

"I know," his papa answered softly.

Henry woke suddenly with a sharp intake of breath, pulling on the attentions of everyone in the little back office. David was nearby and he knelt down. "What happened?"

"I couldn't tell her. Something stopped me. S-something was wrong."

Something was still wrong and Bae could see that even as Regina cut him off to get to her adopted son. "Henry?" she called and sat on the bed with him. She reached for the arm he was cradling to him and pulled back his sleeve to reveal a nasty burn that caused the boy to groan.

"Gold, do you have-"

"Yes yes," Rumplestiltskin answered quickly, pulling a box down from a shelf. "Bae, grab a cloth from that drawer there."

His son did as he was told immediately, finding a clean cloth and handed it over, watching his papa soak it in the various ointments and it glowed faintly when he was done. Bae was surprised, though, when he handed it back. "Put that over the burn."

"I'll do it," Regina argued, but Rumplestiltskin shot her a glare.

"No. He will."

Bae could feel all eyes turn on him and he froze. "Papa, I'm not-"

"Well Regina certainly can't cast a healing spell, so I hardly see what more she thinks she can do."

"I'm his _mother_."

"Are you, dearie?" He turned his gaze on Bae. "Go on, son."

His papa was working at something, but what it was Baelfire couldn't possibly know. Instead of questioning it again he moved to sit on the edge of the cot, displacing Regina, and he could feel all eyes on him. Henry's were the only ones that mattered at that moment, though, and he offered a small smile. "Hey, kid. Looks like it hurts."

"A little,"

"Well then you're tougher than me. It looks like it would hurt a lot. You mind?"

"It's okay," Henry agreed and carefully extended his arm.

It was blistered and red, making Bae grimace as he draped the potion-soaked cloth over his son's skin and gently pressed one hand against it. It didn't begin to glow right away, but after a moment it shimmered and Bae could feel it tingle through his own hand and up his own arm. The relief showed almost instantly then on Henry's face and when the cloth was peeled away the boy's skin was smooth and healed.

"That was cool," Henry said softly. "Didn't know you could do that, did you?"

Bae glanced back to see his papa standing with his cane posed in front of him, leaning against it as he watched the scene play out. "No, I didn't," he admitted softly and Rumplestiltskin turned to leave the room without a word.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Well, apparently everyone is happy that August received a punch to the face lol! I think every review said something about it. Thanks for the fantastic reviews! I hope that the follow up conversation didn't disappoint.

Next time - Chapter Seven: Best Laid Plans, in which Rumplestiltskin tries to decide his own feelings on the fact that his son can use magic, David is sent to the Netherworld, and they make preparations for _someone_ to come through the wishing well from their world.


	8. Best Laid Plans

**Chapter Seven: Best Laid Plans**

Part of him had known what would happen, but he'd had to see it with his own eyes. Once he had, he couldn't ignore it any longer. Baelfire had never shown an aptitude for magic as a child. Just the opposite, in fact. He'd been as afraid - perhaps more, for good reason - of magic as any other person in their village. Rumplestiltskin had been too, once very long ago.

Very few people were naturally gifted with magic, the Dark One reminded himself as he leaned heavily on the display counter in the front of his shop, trying to piece together how he _should_ react to what had happened. Something would have sparked it in Bae. He couldn't imagine what would have without study, but he had been exposed to magic since he was a small child and from what he'd told Rumple, he'd spent close to three centuries in Neverland. If any place was bound to leave its mark….

"Papa?"

Rumplestiltskin turned, feeling more than a little embarrassed that he'd taken off without saying anything. "Hey."

"Hey." Bae moved slowly, as if he were unsure of his father's reaction, but finally stopped and leaned with him on the counter. "Henry's arm is as good as new. What was that stuff?"

"Bits of healing potion. Alone it would have taken the sting out."

"So what healed him?"

"Not what. Who. I think you know that, Baelfire."

"I did that?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"I don't know, son. It was more than just the dark magic clinging to you when you came into my shop."

"How do I get rid of it?"

"You don't. It… reacts to you. I don't know." He pulled in a deep breath. "Did you experience anything before coming here? You said something to Ruby about teleporting."

"Yeah. There were a couple of things actually. In your castle. The book of spells that we found - the one with the spell that sent me here - when I pulled it off the shelf it was written in another language, but then it shifted into English. Then… When Zelena came after us, Belle tried to cast the teleportation spell-"

"_Belle_ did?"

"Yeah. You'd had her cast a protection spell when we went to go save Henry from Pan, so it seemed like the better idea, but it didn't work. It worked for me."

"I see."

"Then what's going on?"

Rumplestiltskin's dark eyes flickered behind Bae to the back. "It may have acted as a kind of catalyst that awakened something lying dormant in you. I'll have to look into it further. For now-"

"We have to get Emma back."

"Yes. And prevent Cora from coming through."

He started past him, but Bae caught his arm and the worry shining in his eyes was impossible to overlook. "Papa, I just want to make sure… I'm not going to, I don't know, lose myself or something to it am I?"

Rumple offered him a sad smile and reached a hand to the side of his face in an affectionate gesture. "No, Bae. You won't turn into me."

"That's not-"

"It's alright, son," Rumplestiltskin said quietly. "I wouldn't want you to turn out the way I did, so let's avoid that, shall we? I'll make the mistakes and you can learn from them."

He moved through the opening to the back without another word and was met almost immediately by a flustered Henry. "Mr Gold, you have to tell them to let me back in! I have to save my mom and Mary Margaret!"

"It's too dangerous, Henry," David argued.

Henry ignored him. "Baelfire can heal any burns I get. I have to save them!"

"David's right, buddy," Bae said as he moved closer. "It's too dangerous to send you back. There has to be another way, right, Papa?"

Rumplestiltskin frowned. He didn't like the idea of sending the boy back in any better than Bae did, but not being fond of a plan didn't take away from its viability. "And who would you suggest we send in his place? The Netherworld is visited only by people who have been under a Sleeping Curse. Even in our land that is rare. I can count all of one here in this land." He sighed, catching his son's gaze and holding it. "I understand the hesitation. I do. But if we don't help them Cora will kill them and them come through herself. There are few in any world quite as vicious as she."

"Henry said Aurora was pulled out. Why send him back if no one is there to receive the message?" Regina countered.

She had a point.

"There will be someone," Charming said and all eyes turned to him. "Snow."

"That's an awful big assumption," Rumple grumbled.

"You said it was a place that people go when they've been under a Sleeping Curse. Snow has. She'll find a way back and I can meet her there."

"And how do you propose to do that?" Regina asked sharply.

"I'll get one of you to put me under a Sleeping Curse."

Bae loosed an exasperated sigh. "Seriously? That's the plan? That has to be one of the-"

"It's Henry or me."

Rumplestiltskin watched the exchange carefully and his son turned to him. "Can you make it work?"

"Can he be put under a Sleeping Spell? Certainly. It's the waking up that'll be the issue. True Love's kiss is the only antidote and his lovely wife is not here."

"I'll kiss her when I see her and it'll wake me up," David answered with a confidence only Prince Charming could have mustered. "I've been away from my wife for too long. It's time to bring her home."

Rumplestiltskin sighed. Well this was a lovely mess he was bound to get blamed for. "Very well. Regina, you'll find everything you need to make the curse. Stir it up. I'll explain everything to the prince here."

* * *

It hadn't been difficult to put him under. One prick and he was out, flopped back on the cot like a man that had had one too many drinks. As the minutes ticked by and nothing happened, Henry stood back with fear in his eyes and Bae reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. He didn't pull away, but instead leaned in and a rush of warmth filled him as he put an arm around his son and held him close. He hated that Henry didn't know him, hated that he felt like he was lying to him. They just had to get Emma home and they could explain everything.

"You think he's going to be okay?" Henry asked softly.

"Definitely."

"You really believe in him, don't you?"

"David? Sure. He's a good guy. He'll pull through."

"No, I mean Mr Gold. You weren't on board until your dad was. You really believe he'll pull it all together."

Bae looked down and found a pair of eyes much like his own staring up. "Yeah, I guess I do."

"Then I do too." Henry smiled. "I'm glad you came to Storybrooke, Baelfire."

"Me too, buddy."

"You think he'll wake up soon?"

"I'm sure he'll be awake very soon," Regina said from her place.

Bae didn't like the thin expression his papa was wearing though. Things weren't going as well as they'd hoped. There was no telling how long David was supposed to be under. There were too many variables and not enough ways to get answers.

Henry looked increasingly more nervous as his adopted mother followed Rumplestiltskin out of the back office and muffled voices couldn't quite be made out. Bae heaved a sigh and ruffled his son's hair. "Where's that book of your? Why don't you read David his and Mary Margaret's story?"

"Okay," the boy said without his usual excitement.

Bae waited until he was settled in with David before edging towards what was likely meant to be a private conversation. He leaned against the doorframe on the inside of the curtain, listening to them discuss back and forth on the likelihood of Cora coming through versus Emma and her mother. Bae remembered Cora, as briefly as he'd had to deal with her. She'd died not long after their return to Storybrooke and he and his father hadn't been at a place in their relationship that he could get the full story. He perked as the possibility of setting a trap at the portal came tumbling from his father's lips and he moved into view. "You're kidding, right? If it's enough to take Cora out it would kill Emma."

Both sorcerers swiveled to look at him and he saw guilt flash through his papa's eyes. "Bae, you don't understand what this woman is capable of."

"Then tell me," he answered, his voice firm and he didn't let his father break eye contact. "What has you do scared that you're willing to murder two innocent women?"

"They won't be the ones coming through, Bae. Without the squid ink, they're lost. We have to do what we can to keep Cora out and-"

"They'll come through."

"You don't know that."

"Actually, I do."

"Then what do you propose?" Regina asked.

"We go to wherever you think they'll come through and we get ready. Nothing that will automatically spring on just anyone."

Rumplestiltskin frowned. "Bae, magic works differently here. Even between the two of us, if she's drawing her power from our land as she comes through we won't stand a chance without being prepared with something already set." He stepped closer and spoke quietly. "I'm sorry, son. I know you probably still have feelings for her, but what if Cora goes after Henry? We have to make a difficult choice here."

"If you had another magic user, could you do it? Could you be ready?" Bae asked, directing the question to them both.

"With the diamonds from the mine, maybe," Regina said. "But the only other powerful magic user in town would be Blue." She made a face at the thought.

"Out of the question," Rumplestiltskin said immediately. "How about Maleficent?"

"Even if she would help she's not in any condition to," Regina answered.

"What about me?"

"No," his papa answered as quickly as he'd shot down the idea of using the Blue Fairy.

"Why not? I mean, it's pretty obvious I can do _something_, even if we don't know why. If it gets them home, I'll do it."

Rumplestiltskin bristled at the thought. "No. Just as you said, we don't know why you are suddenly sensitive to it. Anyway-"

"He's powerful, Rumple," Regina said and received a glare for her efforts.

"He can't control it."

"So anchor him. Just because you refused to do it with me doesn't mean you're incapable of it."

"Papa," Bae murmured as he reached out, "I can do this."

Rumplestiltskin's shoulders drooped and his eyes met Bae's. Though his son couldn't tell the specific thought swirling around the turmoil, he could almost feel the pain of the decision weighing down. He might not know all the risks, but his father did, and it frightened him. Carefully, the elder man reached out, his hand coming to the side of his son's face. "I just got you back," he whispered.

Bae reached up and conceded his hand with his own. "I'm not going anywhere, Papa. I promise."

He sighed and nodded. "Very well. You're a grown man. I suppose I can't stop you if you're so determined."

Well, wasn't that a turn? The tease died on his tongue though, as his papa probably couldn't appreciate it right now. Instead he squeezed the fingers in his own and smiled. "We're going to get them back."

* * *

Agreeing to it didn't mean he had to be happy about it. Bae didn't need to be in the same world as Cora, much less within range of whatever nasty curse she might throw his way. Rumplestiltskin wanted nothing more than to wrap a teleportation spell around his son and send him to the safety of his own home or lock down the shop so tight that he'd wouldn't be able to step outside. He wanted to, but he had to resist. Baelfire had sought him out and he couldn't risk ruining that. He couldn't destroy this trust his son had in him now, strange and undeserving as it was. It was the trust he'd placed in him when they'd lived in the Frontlands. The same trust that made Bae think so much more of his papa than the spinner could have ever been.

_You're better than your curse makes you, _Belle had said. Those words crept in and rattled around his mind, fighting to push back at least a little of the darkness. He couldn't allow himself to sacrifice the woman his son loved, even if it meant keeping a dangerous enemy out. The thoughts burned through his mind, but he knew he had to be better than that if he was ever going to keep Bae.

"So what's his deal, anyway?"

Regina's words startled him out of his thoughts and Rumplestiltskin looked over. "Excuse me?"

"Your son. He seems more interested in getting Emma back and, as far as I'm aware, he's never met her. What's going on, Rumple?"

"Why must something always be going on? Perhaps he's just a better person than either of us could hope to be."

The Evil Queen shot him a look that said she certainly didn't believe that to be true, and why should she? She had no reason to think anything about Bae except for what she saw. He'd never been very open with her about his son and after a while she hadn't cared.

"This is where they'll come through?" Baelfire asked, leaning over the edge of the well that Rumplestiltskin had dropped a vial of True Love potion into weeks before.

"It's the most likely place," his father answered. "This is a link between the worlds. A thin place in the wall, if you will. Storybrooke's legend calls it the place where things lost will be returned to you. If they make it, they'll come through here."

"So what do I need to do?"

_Go home_, was just barely cut off before the words leapt into being and he sighed. "Regina and I will cast the spell. No need for you to get involved in that. It will remain in holding until we see who comes through, but it takes quite a bit of energy to simply hold a spell. Should Cora come through - which, I hate to tell you, Bae, but that's most likely - I just need you to focus. I'll direct the magic."

"Focus. I can do that at least."

"So what happens if it is Cora?"

All three turned, eyes wide at the voice. Henry had been told under no uncertain circumstances that he was to stay in Rumple's shop, but there he stood, grinning like a little imp and right in the middle of everything. There really was no keeping his family safe, was there? At least Belle had sense enough to let him handle things, but if she knew quite what he was handling she would have probably been there too.

"Henry!" Regina gasped as she went a little pale. "I told you to-"

"I know, but I want to help. Please? I can help."

"It's dangerous, buddy," Bae argued.

Rumplestiltskin eyed the boy and then looked to his son. "Why don't you take him back to the shop?"

"Nice try, Pop."

The Dark One offered a small shrug. It wasn't like he was under any disillusions that it would have worked anyway.

"Rumple?" Regina managed and he felt the spark through the air. It was sharp and powerful as only a portal could be. Bae must have felt it too because he went rigid, taking a protective step between Henry and the well.

A low rumble came from the well and the ground trembled. Sparks of magic leapt upward, swirling around in the air. They were strong, as all those present could be seen watching them as they visibly threaded in and around each other like some sort of dance through the air. The magic was strange, unfamiliar, but that didn't mean that it wasn't Cora. She was clever and she was devious, willing to do anything to get what she wanted. Killing Snow and Emma would have been easy for her, something she did without a thought. Using a magic that Rumplestiltskin didn't immediately recognize would be right up her alley.

"Look!" Henry shouted over the rush of magic and Rumplestiltskin felt power gather to himself.

"When Cora comes through we'll have to act quickly," he called, but the hand that appeared over the edge of the wishing well hardly looked like Cora's.

Slowly, and with seemingly great effort, another hand reached up and Emma Swan pulled herself up. She was halfway out of the well when Snow followed her and Rumplestiltskin looked on in disbelief. They'd made it. Against Cora, against the barriers of the worlds, and against every odd imaginable. Well, he'd know better than to bet against Emma again. All at once, the spells they'd been holding simply dissipated, evaporating into a harmless nothing.

"Mom!" Henry called and launched himself into the savior's arms.

"Henry! I missed you so much," she said as she wrapped her arms around the boy as if she might not let go. Snow joined in and Rumple glanced toward his son.

Bae hadn't taken a step forward. In fact, he looked to be rooted in place, unable to move any direction as his eyes were fixated on the blonde woman embracing his son. If Rumplestiltskin had questioned before if his son loved the woman he'd come back for, those questions were done away with.

"So what did I miss?" Emma laughed as she continued to hug on Henry.

"Regina and Mr Gold and Baelfire were going to save us if Cora came through instead of you guys. But Bae and me told them it'd be you." Henry looked back at Baelfire. "Can I call you Bae or is that something only your dad calls you?"

"Yeah, Bae's fine," he answered softly.

"So who are...you?" Henry's mother asked, voice trailing as she made eye contact. "_Neal_?"

"Hi, Emma."

Emma's face went pale and she stepped in front of Henry a little. "How did you... What are you doing here?"

"Who's Neal?" her son asked, peaking around. "That's Baelfire. He's Mr Gold's son from my book, remember? The one he's been looking for?"

Emma's gaze swiveled over to Rumplestiltskin now and he thought she might actually go through with her rather consistent threat to punch him in the face. "You set this up?"

"I didn't know, Emma," Bae cut in. "When I met you, I had no idea. He didn't know until I came in town a couple of days ago."

"Know what?" Henry demanded. "What's going on?"

"Nothing. Nothing is going on. Mary Margaret, don't you need to go wake David up or something. Take Henry?"

"I'm not going until you tell me what's going on," the boy answered stubbornly. He turned to Bae. "You didn't say you knew my mom."

Baelfire grimaced. "Henry, it's really complicated, buddy..."

"That's what grownups say when they don't want to tell you the truth." He looked between them, both Bae and Emma. "I can take it."

Bae shot a quick glance over to his father who stood rigidly still. There was nothing he could do to help him in this now. Stepping in would only do more harm. He did all he could and offered a thin smile of encouragement as his son sank to his knee in front of Henry. "I haven't been totally honest with you, you're right."

"Then be honest now."

Emma looked ready to die as Bae spoke. "I know your mom told you your dad was dead. She didn't... She _doesn't_ know the whole story. She thought I left you both and was just trying to protect you."

The boy was clever and realization shone in his eyes. "You're my dad."

"Henry..." Emma started from behind, but he ducked out of the way of her outstretched hand.

"You _lied_ to me?"

"She was trying to protect you as best she could, buddy," Bae tried, but his son's building fury turned on him.

"You lied too. You could have told me."

Bae opened his mouth to protest, but Henry turned, darting back towards town. He then turned his increasingly more terrified gaze towards Emma who frowned. "Just stay away from him, Neal. You've done enough damage."

"He's my son too. Just let me explain."

"Your over a decade late on that," the savior growled and turned back to her mother.

"David's at Gold's shop waiting for you to bring him out of it," Regina said quietly, eyes following the path that Henry had taken.

"Let's go wake him up then. I've been away from my husband for too long," Snow White said.

The three women started back, leaving Rumplestiltskin and his son in the forest by the wishing well. Bae stood slowly, but looked like his knees might give under him as he stared off after them and his father approached hesitantly. "Bae?" he called, reaching out to him.

Dark eyes finally blinked and Bae turned to face his papa. "I really screwed that one up, didn't I?"

"Oh, Bae," Rumplestiltskin said softly and he could feel the pain radiating off the younger man. He reached a hand to the side of his face and Bae leaned in, their foreheads touching. "I told you I'd help you fix this, son. I will. I promise, we'll get your boy back."

"What if I've lost him for good?"

"Do you trust me, Bae?"

Silence followed the question and then a heavy sigh. "Yeah, Papa. I trust you."

"Then know that I'll help you set this right."

Bae nodded, though he hardly seemed confident. Rumple couldn't blame him. All he could do was follow through on his own promise to help. He'd do whatever it took to bring his family together.

* * *

TBC

Notes: As always, many many thanks for the reviews! Things are about to really start to take off with Emma back.

Next time - Chapter Eight: Unexpected Guests, in which Bae tries to explain time travel to Emma, Henry and his dad have a talk, and a stranger comes to town.


	9. Unexpected Guests

**Chapter Eight: Unexpected Guests**

Emma Swan wasn't sure when her life went quite so crazy. Maybe it had been that way since the day she was born and she'd just been too blind to see it. It must have, even if it hadn't caught up with her until recently. Now she had spent the last several weeks away from her son in the Enchanted Forest, had been chased by ogres, set fire to the wardrobe that had sent her through to begin with, and had battled an evil sorceress. One that happened to be the mother of her son's adopted mother. She'd promised herself to have a chat with Gold as soon as she returned and find out what trick he'd laid out so that Cora couldn't take her heart, but Neal had spoiled that. Her mind was still spinning.

He hadn't expected to see Neal Cassidy ever again. He'd left her with the blame for the stolen watches, a broken heart, and Henry. He shouldn't have known about Henry though. The fact that he was there - and Gold's son? - was hard enough to swallow, but that he knew everything made it even more difficult to believe. Had he been stalking her, or worse, had he and his father set everything up? The parchment with her name written again and again came to mind and Emma felt sick. What if Gold had somehow planned for his son to meet with her? Henry had said he could see the future. What if _everything_ had been a plan? That would mean that she had no control over her own life. She was simply a pawn being moved across Rumplestiltskin's well-set board. She hated being used.

The bell on the front door rang and she looked over to see Gold and Neal walking in. The shop owner quirked an eyebrow. "Has he woken up yet?"

"Yeah. I was just giving them a minute." She turned a glare on her former lover. "My son doesn't want to talk to me, so I thought I'd get out of everyone's way."

"Emma, I was trying to-"

An uncontrollable rage was building faster than she could manage and she grabbed him by the shirtsleeve, hauling him out the front door and leaving Gold in the shop. Neal started to say something else, but she cut him off. "No. You don't get to try to explain everything away. You think you're smooth, I get it. You and your dad were _really_ clever."

"Papa doesn't have anything to do with this. Emma, please, there's so much you don't know."

"Really? Well let's start with this: did your dad set everything up or was I just the convenient patsy to take your fall for you?"

"Neither."

"You seriously expect me to believe that?"

He sighed and looked like he might reach out to her, but thought better of it. "I found out who you were. I didn't know when I first met you."

"How did you find out about Henry?"

That question made him pause. "That's... kind of complicated."

"We've got time," Emma snapped and watched him shrink back just a little at her tone. Good. He could feel everything that she'd felt for the last nearly twelve years.

Neal leaned against the outside of Gold's shop. "I need you to stay with me on this, okay?"

"I'm not stupid, Neal."

"No, but you have a tough time accepting what isn't right in front of you."

She glared at him and waved him on. It wasn't like anything he said was going to fix everything. As soon as he'd said whatever it was he was going to say, she'd tell him to stay the hell away from her and her son. He didn't need to be around Henry. Any moral ambiguity that he'd shown before made so much more sense now that she knew who his dad was.

"This is going to sound crazy, but this isn't the first time we've had this discussion. You and Henry went with my dad to New York to find me. You just didn't know it was me."

"We never went to New York."

"Let me finish? That's how I met Henry. You didn't tell him then and you hadn't told me. I know this sounds crazy, but after... a lot of stuff in between we got separated and I've been trying to get back to you both. I found this spell in Papa's castle that bypassed the rule about time travel and-"

"Stop," Emma growled. "Do you know how insane you sound?"

"I know, but, Emma, you have to believe me."

"No, I really don't. You left me to rot in jail, Neal, and now you bust in here and want to be apart of my son's life?"

"Our son."

"No. Henry is _my_ son," she growled, turning in heel. "I've fought for him. What have you done? Don't give me this crap, Neal. I'm not seventeen anymore. I don't buy it."

"Emma, please."

"Forget it. You lost any trust I had in you when you walked out on us."

* * *

Regina was going to kill Rumple. At the very least he could have warned her. She knew that he knew. How could he not? The question was _when_ he had found out. She'd always suspected that he had linked her to Henry because his birth mother was the woman he'd set up to break the curse, but now she wondered if it was because Henry was Rumplestiltskin's grandson, and my, wasn't _that_ hard to wrap her mind around? Her former mentor's long-lost son and the savior of Storybrooke had known each other and Henry was the proof they had both left behind. Regardless of the relationship, there was a good chance she'd kill him.

Henry had slipped through the back door of the office as his grandparents reunited and Emma battled it out with Gold's son in front. Regina followed him out after a moment and found him sitting in the back step with his chin resting firmly in his palms and his elbows balanced on his knees. "Is this seat taken?" she asked, gaining his attention.

Her adopted son tried for a smile. "Nope."

She took it as an invitation from a hurting little boy and eased herself down on the step. He looked so upset and so hurt. He had every right to be. Everyone he loved had lied to him, starting first and foremost with her. She'd been so determined not to be anything like her mother that she'd done just that and she'd pushed her son away in doing so. Regina sighed and carefully wrapped an arm around Henry, happily surprised when he didn't twist out of it. He let loose a long breath through his nose and she kissed the top of his head. "I'm so sorry, sweetie."

"What for? You helped today. For once you're the only one who _wasn't_ lying to me." He paused, turning a worried look up at her. "Did you know too?"

Regina frowned into the mess of brown hair. "No, she whispered. "I didn't know that Baelfire is your father." She sighed, steeling herself to go against years and years of selfish habits. She needed to be better for him right now, not selfish and bitter. She had to put Henry first, and if there was one thing she was learning about the boy that she'd raised, it was that he wanted all of his family together. Gold might mock her attempts, and she knew he would, but she wanted to make sure that she was a part of her son's family, at least in his eyes. "I know I'm the last person that you'd expect to hear this from, but you haven't heard the whole story yet."

"Baelfire has been here for _days_ now. He should have told me. We even-" a sob shook him and Regina saw the tears that had started to slide down her son's cheeks- "talked about my dad. He could have said _something_."

"You're right, he should have."

"Why didn't he? Why does everyone keep lying to me?"

Regina pulled him close. "Sometimes we're just trying to protect you, Henry, and sometimes..." She pulled in a steadying breath. If she wanted him to believe in her, she had to believe in him. No one in all the worlds deserved her belief more. "And sometimes we're very selfish and are trying to protect ourselves."

Henry sniffed, looking up at her. "Is that why you never told me?"

"It is, and I know I was wrong sweetie. I'm sorry."

Her son leaned into her embrace and she tightened her arm around him. "You really are changing," he said softly.

"I'm trying, Henry. I'm really trying."

"I know, Mom."

The Evil Queen melted a little. They sat there for several long minutes and Regina revelled in the fact that her son was coming to her for comfort again. She could do this. She could be better for him. More than ever she was determined that she didn't have to be like her mother. _That's up to you, _Rumplestiltskin had told her when she'd asked if using magic would send her down the same path that Cora went down. It was up to her, and she could choose to be what he needed.

"I think I want to meet my dad," Henry said quietly and she tried not to be too disappointed.

"Alright, Henry," she said instead and kissed his head. She would be better for him.

* * *

He hadn't known exactly what he had expected from Emma. She'd been angry the first time and she had (accidentally) sought him out. Now it really did look like he'd set everything up. He should have known to ease Emma into the idea of him using magic to get to her. She would have rolled her eyes and gone with it in his timeline, but here and now she was still not quite sure of herself or her place. That had always made her combative and quick to question. Of course she'd thought he was lying.

Bae loosed a long breath from his place at the display counter. His son hated him, the love of his life thought he was crazy, and as his phone buzzed in his pocket and he saw Tamara's name and picture lit up behind the text that he didn't bother to read as he let his head fall so that his face was pressed against his arms against the glass. His papa was right. All magic came with a price, and this price seemed to be that nothing would go as he'd hoped.

"Giving up?"

Baelfire sat up, startled. His papa was rummaging through a pile of things in the far corner, giving him space and trying to pretend he wasn't irked by the fact that his shop was currently filled with certain people he only liked a fraction of the time. The voice had come from behind Bae, though, and he'd have known it anywhere. He straightened and turned, finding Henry staring back at him. The boy's expression was carefully guarded, reminding him of a look that Wendy had always told him that he had when they were children together. Now he'd caused his own son to look at him in that way and he felt his heart sink a little further.

Henry moved around, pulling a stool up to sit next to him. "So," he said slowly, those young and dark eyes burning through Bae, "you're my dad?"

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you say something?"

Bae heaved a heavy sigh. "It's really complicated, buddy."

"I can take it."

A thin smile stretched his lips. "Your mom already thinks I'm crazy."

"It took Emma almost a year of living here to believe in magic and then I had to eat a poisoned apple turnover for her to get it. She comes around slowly and has to have proof. You've just got to be patient with her."

Bae stared at him for a moment. Sometimes it hit him hard just how smart and how perceptive his son really was. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

Henry smiled slowly, but at least it did reach his eyes. "Anyway, I'm the grandson of Snow White and Prince Charming - and apparently Rumplestiltskin - so I'm pretty sure I can handle anything. Try me."

Bae watched the kid for a minute. He was truly amazing. The Heart of the Truest Believer was what Pan had said he had inside, and it had to be the case. He held onto that as the story tumbled from his lips. He left out a lot, but the major pieces came through and he watched Henry's eyes light up. His son didn't think he was crazy. This was a good start.

"So you've already lived all of this?" Henry asked when he was done.

"Sort of. I mean, I showed up here before you and Emma came to find me, so I've thrown some stuff off."

"So why didn't you tell me before?"

Bae sighed. "I knew your mom hadn't yet and... Well I didn't want to go behind her back. She did what she thought was best for you."

"Do you still love her?"

There was a pause. "Yeah, buddy. I still do."

The guarded expression had completely washed away now and Henry was grinning. "That's so cool. You two can get back together now! It'll be perfect!"

"Woh there," Bae chuckled. "I don't know if she felt the same way when we were separated and I can guarantee she doesn't right now."

A soft snort could be heard across the shop and Bae saw his father straightening from where he'd been fussing with something or the other to keep busy. He turned his attention towards his son and grandson, dusting his hands off and reaching for his cane. "I find that difficult to believe. She'd hardly put the effort into being that upset with you if she didn't have lingering feelings."

Henry beamed. "See? Your dad thinks so too!" He turned his gaze to Rumplestiltskin. "I guess if he's my dad, that makes you my grandpa, doesn't it?"

"I suppose it does," the shop owner answered with an amused smile.

"Can I call you Grandpa?"

Bae watched, remembering how curt and irritable his father had been when Henry had asked the question in the different time. Now, though, his expression was soft and amused as he came to a stop in front of the counter. "You can call me whatever you'd like, Henry,"

"Grandpa Gold," the boy settled on with a firm nod. "That sounds right. Is that what I called him in your timeline, Bae?" He paused, and the next name came out as if he were testing it. "Dad?"

Bae grinned at first and pulled Henry into a side hug. He had his son back. Maybe this wasn't such a disaster of a trip after all. He let him go after a moment and realized the question was still hanging in the air. "You... Well there really wasn't time, I guess," he sidestepped. "You guys didn't get a chance to get close."

Henry's excitement faded just a little and Rumplestiltskin must have seen it too. "Well, I believe that's something that should change," his papa said and Henry's grin returned. "We are family after all."

"Definitely," Bae's son answered.

The curtain separating the front of the shop and the back office was pushed hastily back and Snow White came barreling in, looking like she didn't know who to yell at first. Emma followed, trying to stop her, but she should have known better, even as Mary Margaret turned on Bae and he found himself shrinking back just a little. "I think it's time we get some answers here. Some _real_ answers." Well, good to know that they were jumping to Emma's side. Bae guessed he shouldn't have been surprised.

Rumplestiltskin bristled. "Good to see nothing changes. A little gratitude would go a long way, Snow, in that Bae here helped you and your daughter get home."

Bae shot him a look. Was his papa really about to fess up to nearly wiping them out to keep Cora away? No, he realized after a moment. He was letting them pull their own conclusions. He'd been there as backup if something did go wrong, but he hadn't actually helped with anything. Rumplestiltskin knew what he was doing, though, because Mary Margaret's expression eased and David - awake and alert - glanced over to Henry and the boy nodded in response.

"Well," Mary Margaret huffed after a moment. "Emma said something about an absurd story and David said that nothing was said about him being Henry's father."

"He was trying to help Mom," Henry offered. "He knew she hadn't told me."

Bae's phone began to buzz again, a call instead of the text he still hadn't read yet. He hit a button and it went silent. "Listen, I know that it's all a little... weird. I get it." He looked directly at Emma. "I'm not sure if I would believe me either if I were in your shoes, but I swear to you that what I said is true. I know you haven't heard it yet, but I made you a promise that I'd find a way back to you and Henry."

Emma was watching him carefully, her walls higher than he'd seen in a long time. "Is what he's saying even possible?" she asked, directing the question towards Rumplestiltskin, but Regina's voice answered from behind.

"No. There's no spell that anyone can endure that allows for time travel. It would break one if the three laws of magic."

"That's true," Bae's papa said thoughtfully, but then turned his keen eyes on his former student that stood in the door leading to the office. Apparently she'd been apart of whatever explanation Emma had given her parents. "But that doesn't mean there isn't a loophole in there. Sending someone's consciousness back is different than displacing a body. The limitations naturally in place provide just enough room to move with it."

"You can't be serious, Rumple," Regina grumbled.

"You believe him?" Emma asked.

"I do. Without any doubt."

"I do too," Henry piped up and both women looked like that had put them in a place they'd rather not be. They didn't have to find a way to answer as the bell rang and Rumplestiltskin turned an exasperated glare at the intruder.

"Don't mind the closed sign. It means nothing really."

Ruby didn't seem to mind the sharp tone as she nearly flew across the shop and tackled Mary Margaret in a crushing hug. She switched over to Emma next and then to David quickly before wrapping an arm around the two women again. "I knew you guys would make it back."

"Charming found us," Mary Margaret said with a smile that could light up a whole room as she looked back at her husband who was wearing a smile nearly as bright.

"I think it's safe to say that while I'll always find her, I'd rather not have to go looking again," David chuckled.

Ruby grinned toothily. "Well, you guys go get cleaned up, washed up, and ready. Granny and I are going to throw you the biggest homecoming party you've ever seen."

"Already?" Emma managed.

"Yep! There's no time to waste. You never know what craziness will happen next. You'll come too, won't you, Baelfire?"

Bae blinked, feeling Emma's eyes immediately on him. "Sure," he said after a minute. "Pop and I will be there, but we have to take care of something first."

"Great. The whole town will be there as soon as they hear Snow's back."

"Well, you better be on your way if you have that much to do," Rumplestiltskin said, not bothering to hide the fact he really just wanted them out.

Bae chuckled, and received a quick hug from Henry before he left. "You'll be there tonight?"

"Promise. You're stuck with me now, kid."

"Awesome."

He watched his son go, feeling a twinge of pain dulled only by the fact that he knew he'd see him again that night. Eventually he could win Emma over, he thought, but it would take a lot of work. Maybe he'd get lucky and Hook wouldn't show up for a while. That'd certainly give him a head start.

"So," his papa said and Bae found clever dark eyes on him, "what is it that we need need to take care of?"

"Don't be mad?"

Rumplestiltskin's lips twitched downard. "Why would I be angry with you, Bae?"

His son tried to offer him an innocent smile, but even he knew it was failing miserably. "My ex - sort of ex - Tamara is mixed up with some bad people. It's a long story and I really don't want to get into it now, but she's been calling more than just last night."

"You think she's coming here?"

"I don't know. I hope not. I think I've held it off for a little while, but I'm not sure. There's someone here in Storybrooke that knows her, though. He met her before I did."

"She was here?"

"No."

"So it's someone that can leave across the town line."

"Yes."

"Oh, son, please tell me you didn't," Rumplestiltskin sighed and Bae felt more than a little guilty. He knew why his father hated August and he had a damn good reason to.

"August was the only one that had information on her. It wasn't a lot, but I needed anything I could get from him. He'll be able to help me if she comes into town too."

"Not in the state he's in."

"That's where it gets tricky. I kind of made a deal with him." He paused and his father sighed again. "I'm sorry, Papa. It was important. Tamara has the potential to cause a lot of trouble."

"I know."

"Can you do anything to reverse it?"

"His wooden state? I'd have to see him."

"I know where he is."

Dark brows knit together and the frown seemed firmly in place. "I'm not doing this for him. I'm doing this for you," he said firmly.

"I know, Papa. I understand. Really I do."

"Stop me if I try to snap his neck?"

Bae felt a smirk take hold. "I'll do my best, but no promises."

* * *

Snow had never thought she'd be so happy to be back in Storybrooke. When she'd first woken from the curse that Regina had dragged them all into she'd missed her home terribly. Having Charming with her made it bearable, and having Emma sweetened the sourness of the Land Without Magic to the point that she hadn't immediately started looking for a way home. The fact that she'd been awake as Snow White in Storybrooke for less than twelve hours before she hopped through a portal after her daughter and was tossed back into the Enchanted Forest could have had something to do with it too.

Now, though, after the ogres and the fighting and Cora, this most certainly did feel like a homecoming. One that she could accept. "So what did we miss?"

"Everyone tried to leave town," Henry offered up.

"But we convinced them to stay," David added.

"Regina's been doing really well in not using magic," Henry said. His adopted mother had split ways with them, but not before Emma had asked her to join them that evening. "And when she does use magic, she's been using it for good."

"That's amazing, Henry," Snow cheered.

"Then Baelfire showed up and Mr Gold - _Grandpa_ Gold - has been a lot nicer since. He saved Ruby from an angry mob."

David laughed. "I'm pretty sure he threatened to hike their rents if they didn't go away."

"Things have been busy around here," Snow agreed and she leaned into her husband as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I'm so glad you're both safe. Emma and I were so worried about you. We have so many stories to tell you, Henry. Maybe you can add to your book."

"That'd be so cool! And maybe I can go to the Enchanted Forest too someday? Make my own stories?"

"Let's slow it down there, kid," Emma said with a strained smile. "That place is a little crazy."

"Did you fight ogres?"

"We did, actually. There was-"

"Excuse me?"

They paused, all midstep, and turned. Snow was still on high alert from her time in the Enchanted Forest and by the looks of it, so was Emma. They both relaxed just a little as a woman approached them. The tension returned by a fraction when they realized that they didn't know who she was.

"Hi, I'm sorry to bother you. I think I'm a little lost. I'm looking for Storybrooke. Is this the right town?" the woman asked, holding up a postcard with _Welcome to Storybrooke_ scrawled across it.

"Well, you've found it," David said with a forced smile. "Are you looking for something in particular?"

"I am," she said, relief evident. "My fiance's family is from here, apparently, and he came to visit is his dad."

"Who's your fiance?" Henry asked, never phased by a stranger. "What's your name?"

She smiled, her dark eyes lingering on Henry just a moment. "My fiance's name is Neal. Neal Cassidy. I'm Tamara."

* * *

TBC

Notes - Wow. This weekend has been more than a little crazy and I'm so happy I'm ahead in writing for this story. I got nothing done on that front on either Saturday or Sunday. I'm moving in a week and my entire life seems to be boxed up.

Next time: Chapter Nine: Welcome Home, in which August has to face Rumplestiltskin and Bae receives an unhappy surprise.


	10. Welcome Home

**Chapter Nine: Welcome Home**

Henry was trying not to panic. This was the woman that kept calling his dad. He'd said she was a bad person, but here she was impersonating his fiancé. Henry knew better, of course, because his dad wouldn't be engaged. Baelfire loved his mom, so there was no way he'd be engaged to a villain. Or to anyone, for that matter.

"Oh yes, we know him!" Grandma Snow said in her chipper voice, though she was throwing a sideways glance at Emma whose face was somewhere on the line between shock and anger.

Tamara quirked an eyebrow when no further information was given. "Do you have any idea where he might be?"

"With his dad, I think," Mary Margaret continued, and she sounded like she was still unsure of if he should be saying anything or not. Emma shrugged, so her mother continued. "He's going to be over at Granny's here in a few hours. There's going to be a big party and tons of food. You should drop by. You're bound to see him there."

Henry swiveled around. That was a terrible idea! She couldn't invite this lady to their homecoming party! His mom and dad were supposed to have time to talk and hash things out. Now Bae would have to find a way to handle this problem. What if she was there to hurt them? She looked clever, and she'd already fooled Mary Margaret. He had to think fast before-

"Thank you so much. And you are?"

"Mary Margaret," Snow White said with a bright smile.

"You know, if you want I can go find him for you," Henry offered in a rush. "That way you wouldn't have to come by Granny's. I mean, it's really more of a family thing..."

"Henry," David admonished. "If Tamara is Neal's fiancé, she's more than welcome. That makes her family too."

"You're part of Neal's family?" she asked incredulously.

"Maybe he had a good reason for not telling you," Henry said and felt the surprised looks turned on him more than he saw them. He held Tamara's gaze though.

She smiled, a little uncomfortable. "Maybe so. I'll just go get unpacked and meet him there. He'll know I'm in town when he checks his voicemail."

"What on earth was all of that?" Mary Margaret demanded as soon as she was out of earshot.

Henry turned wide eyes on her. "That's Tamara. Baelfire said she's a bad person. You heard her. She even lied about being his fiancé!"

"That rock on her finger looked pretty real to me," Emma countered.

"It's fake. It has to be. Or maybe he found out she was bad in his time so he knows now?"

His mom sighed. "Listen, kid, I hate to bust your bubble, but there is no alternate timeline or anything like that. Neal is a conman. That's what he does."

"No he's not," Henry said firmly.

"Okay," Mary Margaret broke in. "We won't know anything until we talk to Neal. Or Baelfire. Or whatever his name is. So let's just get home. I know I could use a shower and a fresh change of clothes. Emma?"

She nodded. "Yeah. That sounds like a plan."

Henry knew that tone though. Emma didn't believe him. She didn't believe Baelfire. She was shutting herself off from the truth staring her in the face all over again, as if the last year simply hadn't happened. He was in for a lot of work, but it would be worth it if his parents could have their Happy Ending.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin was not happy about this. He'd hoped never to lay eyes on August Booth again. He'd proved less than useful and hadn't even had the courtesy to die afterwards. He'd provided his son with some useless information, sure, but Bae's good heart had gotten the better of him this time and they'd found themselves at the short end of this particular situation. That didn't mean he couldn't turn it to his advantage, but it was still irksome.

"You sure you're okay with this, Papa?" Bae asked for the third time since they had left the shop.

"You made a deal, son, and you've done what you said you would. Now I'm doing what I told you I would."

"You don't have to, you know."

"I know."

Bae led him through an overgrown path in the forest and Rumplestiltskin tried not to let the brush snag his suit pants. The ground was soft and difficult to walk on, his ankle already beginning to ache with the strain that was put in it as the cane slipped into the mud instead of supporting his weight. His son seemed to notice the trouble and slowed his pace, finally coming to his side and offering him a hand.

"I am more than capable of getting myself through a little mud."

Baelfire offered a right smile. "I know, Papa. The offer's there."

Some of the irritation melted away and Rumple's expression softened. "Thank you, Bae."

"Any time, Pop."

They worked their way up to an old trailer, the air heavy around them like the sky might open back up and turn the already mushy ground into something impossible to navigate. The last thing that Rumple wanted was to become trapped with the puppet-man that had once managed to dupe him.

Bae knocked, the sound echoing hollowly. There was nothing for a moment, but then a soft scraping sound could be heard and the door opened, showing a fully wooden August Booth. "That was fast," he said to Bae.

"I'm a man of my word," Rumple's son informed him and moved inside.

Rumplestiltskin followed and didn't miss the uneasy look that somehow made its way into the wooden face. He stopped once he was inside, squared his shoulders, and turned a steely glare on the young man.

"I know I'm probably the last person you'd like to help, so thank you for-"

"I'm sorry, but I don't believe I've offered to do anything of the sort. We haven't discussed a price yet."

If August could go pale, he did. "But I did everything your son asked..."

"You did, and he fulfilled his end of his bargain with you. He plead your case."

He watched the realization set in and August swallowed hard. "What's your price, Rumplestiltskin?"

"A favour."

"That's vague."

"Do you want to be human again or not?"

"Your favours can be a steep price. Listen, I just want to see my papa again." He looked back at Bae. "You get that, right? Tell him."

"Nothing's stopping you," Rumplestiltskin cut his son off. "Go. I'm sure Marco would be thrilled to see you now that he knows who you are. No more sneaking around, Booth."

"I can't go like this."

"Then a favour is my price. If it's too steep for you, that's your problem and not mine. Let's go, Bae. It looks like our time has been wasted."

Baelfire hesitated, but a brief look in his direction got his papa's point across. Before they'd taken more than a step each, August called out to them. "Okay. Deal. I owe you a favour. Just change me back."

Rumplestiltskin turned a cold smile on him. "Lovely," he said, his tone matching his gaze. "I won't put all of the pesky conditions on you that the Blue Fairy did. I don't really care if you lie and keep to your selfish ways. That's your own business, but when I call my favour in you _will_ be there. That, or you'll spend the rest of your days in this form. Do you understand my terms?"

August nodded slowly. "Yes."

"Grand. Drink this." Rumplestiltskin offered him a small vial he pulled from his breast pocket.

August knocked it back like a shot and set the empty vial down. "I don't feel any different."

"Patience." The Dark One reached his hand out, magic glowing around it as it built. It was strange here. In the Enchanted Forest he could have simply waved a hand and snapped the puppet into a man without a great deal of effort. Here there was certainly more to it. He felt the pull of the magic and the exchange of the price he'd laid on it working in and around the spell. If August tried to worm his way out of paying, he'd be instantly returned to his natural state. Rumplestiltskin closed the loopholes personally, making the arrangement airtight.

August loosed a breath and the sorcerer watched his spell take physical form. The wood melted away, leaving skin behind and another relieved sigh escaped him as blue eyes fluttered open. "Thank you."

"I'm hardly doing you a favour," Rumplestiltskin snapped, but Bae's smile softened the sting of irritation. His son was truly a good man. August Booth had done plenty of damage to Bae directly, but he seemed genuinely pleased that they were able to help him.

"Marco will probably be at Emma and Mary Margaret's welcome home party at Granny's tonight. You should go. He'll want to know you're okay."

August grinned widely. "Can't think of any other way I'd like to spend my first night back. And hey, I'll buy you a beer."

Bae offered a glare, even if it hardly could be considered one. "Yeah, well don't think buying one beer negates all the crap you've pulled."

"I'll be better. Second chances are for being better, right?"

Rumplestiltskin tried not to tense as his son's gaze shifted over to him. "Yeah. I guess they are."

* * *

"You want to talk about it?"

Emma looked up from where she was seated on the bed in the upstairs room she shared with her son. Mary Margaret stood at the top of the stairs, decked out in a red dress and a look that somehow made Emma want to spill everything. She'd never been good at vocalising her own feelings, but something in her mother's eyes made her want to try. Wanting to and being able to were very different though.

Mary Margaret accepted the shrug she received as an invitation and she took a seat on the bed, reaching out and taking hold of Emma's hand. "Tell me about Neal?"

Emma sighed and closed her eyes. Where to start? She didn't really want to admit that she'd met the father of her child while stealing a car that he'd already stolen - the same car that she still drove, no less - even if her parents had met while her mother stole a ring from her father that had been meant for another woman. Their whirlwind affair didn't seem like a good mother-daughter story either or how it ended. There was no Happy Ending to it, or tales of bravery. The memory of sitting in that cell and finding out that he'd left her with a car and a baby was burned into her memory, eating at her soul even now. She wasn't sure she wanted to tell Mary Margaret - who married the most perfect man in existence, apparently - how she'd thought she loved him and how he'd destroyed the home she'd thought she'd finally found for herself with him. Somehow, as the words swirled around her mind, they fell flat next to everything she knew about Mary Margaret and David and a regret that had stayed with her for years clawed its way back to the surface.

"Henry seems to think he's telling the truth," Mary Margaret tried.

"Henry is eleven," her daughter pointed out. "He finds out his dad is really from the Enchanted Forest and he's sold on whatever lie Neal feeds him."

"You don't think he could be telling the truth?"

Emma snorted. To hell with it. "He set me up to take the fall for some watches he stole and abandoned me to rot in jail. No, I can't trust him. Honestly, I don't want Henry anywhere near someone like that."

Mary Margaret let out a low whistle. "Well, he _is_ Rumplestiltskin's son," she murmured. "Even so, David says that he seems like he's turned his life around. Maybe he just didn't know how to approach you. Did he know about Henry when he left?"

"No," Emma answered, her voice small.

"See? Maybe he just wants to be a part of his son's life. Emma, Henry has a right to know who his family is. You of all people should understand that."

"I just want to protect him."

Mary Margaret squeezed her hand. "I know, but you don't want to build so many walls around him that they become a prison. For Henry or yourself."

Emma leaned then, her head on her mother's shoulder in an uncharacteristically display and Mary Margaret lost no time in wrapping her arms around her. "I can't risk it."

"It's not just your risk, Emma. You have to think of Henry."

"I am."

"Are you sure you're not just scared of getting hurt again?"

Emma bit her lip, stopping the automatic defence that was bubbling up.

"No one is telling you you have to fall back in love with him, Emma," Mary Margaret said soothingly. "Just that you have to give him a chance to be part of Henry's life. How much he's a part of yours... Well, that's something you'll need to decide for yourself."

The blonde savior sighed. "Thanks."

"Hey, what are mothers for, right?"

"Besides killing ogres?"

Mary Margaret choked out a laugh. "Besides that," she agreed and kissed the top of her daughter's head. "Now come on. We have a welcome home party to get to."

* * *

There was a good possibility that most people in the town had shown up to welcome Mary Margaret and Emma home. The diner was packed, even if he'd thought he had come early enough to find his way through. He wasn't surprised, really, from what he remembered of Snow White from the Enchanted Forest. He'd been a kid, but kids were more observant than adults gave them credit for. She'd been loved by all and from what he could tell, nothing had changed.

"Lemur guy!"

August turned, the comment directed at him. It felt good not to have to turn his entire body just to get a good look at his surroundings.

Ruby, a tray full of beer, waved at him with a wide grin and he returned it. "Hey!" he greeted back and was glad he took a step towards her because it looked like Grumpy was already a couple drinks in and bumped into the waitress. The drinks would have gone flying if he hadn't been right there, but he grabbed the tray, steadying it.

She laughed. "Wow. Thanks for that, Leroy!"

"Any time, sister!" the dwarf answered and continued on his way.

"You okay?" August asked, making sure she had her balance back before letting go of the tray.

"Oh yeah. Everyone's just a little excitable tonight. Where have you been hiding yourself since the curse broke?"

August grinned, hiding the discomfort. "Oh, you know. Here and there. I'm actually looking for someone tonight. I thought this might be the best place now that everyone remembers who they are."

"August?"

He turned, recognizing the voice. "Emma Swan. How is the savior of Storybrooke?"

The woman in question rolled her eyes. "Good to see you back to normal. What happened?"

"Uh... Long story that may include me having made a deal with Rumplestiltskin."

"Who are you looking for, August? I'll send them your way," Ruby offered.

"Marco."

She nodded and he turned back to Emma who was wearing a particularly sour expression. "You couldn't have found anyone else with magic to fix you up?"

"No one as powerful, no." It didn't hurt that Neal had set it up, but as far as he knew Emma wasn't aware the two even knew each other, and he didn't want to be the one to tell her just how they'd met.

"So," Emma drawled out, looking him up and down. "Pinocchio, huh? I feel like I should be careful with how far I trust you."

"Should have trusted me a little further when I tried to tell you about the curse."

If he wasn't mistaken, her cheeks coloured a bit at the remark. "To be fair, you were trying to tell me that my parents were Snow White and Prince Charming and they tossed me into a magical wardrobe on the day of my birth to send me here."

"Was I wrong?"

She snorted. "It's good to see you, August. I... We should get that drink you promised me sometime. It'd be good to have someone I can talk to about all the crazy."

"Someone you can trust?" he asked with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

A smile touched her lips, careful and guarded. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves now."

"Emma?" a familiar voice sounded behind him. "Ruby was saying someone was looking for me?"

"I'll leave you to it," the savior said.

"I owe you a drink."

"Yes you do."

He watched her go for only half a moment before he gathered enough courage to turn around. Geppetto hadn't changed a bit. His hair _might_ have been a little thinner, though it was hard to tell, but the laugh lines and the crinkles around his eyes reminded August of how his papa used to laugh and pick him up, happy to be near. His voice caught in his throat and guilt at not coming sooner threatened to crush him under its weight, but he pushed it back. He could only move forward. Anything else and he'd find himself tangled in it as surely as if he still had strings attached to him.

"Pinocchio," the old carpenter breathed.

"Yeah, Papa. I'm sorry I'm late."

The older man pulled him into a full embrace, crushing him against him and he could hear a son welling up. "My boy," Geppetto cried. "I'm so sorry. So very, very sorry, my boy."

August was returning the embrace with everything he had, but the apology caught him off guard. "What for?"

"For asking so much of you so young. I burdened you with a weight no child should ever have to bear and I called it love. I-"

"You saved my life, Papa. Don't apologize for that."

Geppetto pulled in a shaky breath and if he had any argument left it died before it made it to his lips. "Are you staying?"

"Yeah. I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

* * *

They wouldn't be staying long. Bae knew that much as soon as they approached the diner and the crowd was spilling out onto the patio. Rumplestiltskin had never been a fan of a crowd he wasn't in complete control of and the only reason he was along at all was because he wanted to spend time with his son. That, and the pretty woman who had her arm looped through his might have had something to do with convincing him as well.

"Look at that," Belle said and pointed through the crowd. "Is that August with Marco?"

"Looks like it," Bae answered and he couldn't help but to grin. August might not deserve a whole lot after some of the crap he'd pulled, but Marco had always seemed like such a decent person. The bright smile on his face was worth it.

Belle smiled and leaned in, her head resting on Rumplestiltskin's shoulder. "You did that, didn't you?"

He rolled his eyes. "Don't go getting your hopes up. He owes me a hefty favour that I plan to call in shortly enough."

Her smile didn't fade and Bae chuckled to himself. That was something that he both loved about Belle and that irked him. She could see the good in any situation, even if it might not actually be there. If he'd been left to his own wants and wishes, Rumplestiltskin would never have gone out of his way to help August Booth. He'd done it for Baelfire and if his son knew him at all - and he knew him better than his papa might have prefered - the favour he would call in would be for Bae as well. They'd discussed it briefly after they'd left August's little trailer. There was no reason to waste someone who knew Tamara. If she would have sought him out before, she would seek him out now and if he answered to them, it could certainly sway the situation to their favour.

Bae still hadn't gone into the details of exactly what Tamara had done. He didn't want Rumplestiltskin to kill her, and he'd be signing her death warrant if he admitted that that she'd tried to kill him and then promptly kidnapped the Dark One's grandson to take him to Neverland at the behest of Peter Pan. He was still hurt by Tamara's actions - that she still had yet to follow completely through with here - but he wasn't ready to put her head on the chopping block just yet.

"Do you think Henry would like that, Bae?"

He startled out of his thoughts. "I'm sorry. Spaced out for a second. Like what?"

Belle's free hand moved as she spoke. "I thought maybe when I get the library open that Henry might like to come over and read to some of the younger children. Perhaps his book with all of our stories in it? Would he like that?"

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea," Rumplestiltskin murmured.

"Why not?"

"There are things in that book that shouldn't be shared with just anyone."

Bae remembered his papa's reaction when he'd seen the Kris Dagger in all of it's half-page glory. Every detail that could have been seen at that angle had been visible, including Rumplestiltskin's name. He hadn't thought of it before, but in the wrong hands that information could be very dangerous to him, even there in Storybrooke. There wasn't a great deal of explanation about it, but it had very clearly been important and linked to him as the Dark One.

"It's not really for young kids," Bae added, shooting his father a meaningful look that said he understood. "I mean, Regina's trying to be better for Henry, right? No reason to get all the kids riled against her."

"An army of rugrats against Regina," Rumplestiltskin mused. "That might be entertaining."

"Stop yourself, Papa," Bae chuckled. "Let's not throw things too far off track, huh?"

"Neal?"

He stopped dead, the mirth gone from the conversation and looked through the crowd. So few people called him that anymore that he knew the voice, even though he'd only heard it on the phone in recent days. He looked over to see Tamara picking her way through the crowd and the first thought that flittered through his mind was who in their right mind would have invited her? Even if they weren't aware of her real goal, she was a stranger in Storybrooke. A stranger that didn't know their secret. Bringing her to a place where people felt confident to speak openly was asking for her to learn their secrets.

"I'm sorry," she said as she approached, wrapping her arms around his neck, "but I was just so worried."

Bae tried not to stiffen too much. She hadn't shot him, not yet. She hadn't kidnapped Henry, not yet. He could stop all of that. He wasn't under any illusion that he could talk her out of it, but he could stop her. He would, and to do that he couldn't give himself away this early. His father was a master tactician and the curse hadn't provided that to him, so somewhere in his own mind lay the that same talent that he needed to pull from now. He'd run small-time cons when he was with Emma. It was no different. If he kept telling himself that, he might even believe it.

He wrapped an arm around her. "I know, I'm sorry. It's just family stuff, like I said."

"Well, if you're rekindling family relationships, shouldn't they meet your fiancé?" She pulled back from him and turned her gaze on his father and Belle. "You must be Neal's dad."

"Indeed I am," Rumplestiltskin answered slowly. "And you, of course, are Tamara."

She grinned widely. "See, you talk about me to him, so why were you so freaked out about me coming to meet him?"

"Just nerves, I guess," Bae answered slowly.

She didn't seem phased by it and he hoped that meant he was coming across smoother than he felt. Really, he felt like he was eighteen again, hoping that a cheesy grin and a lot of luck was going to save him from a cop that had decided he looked guilty and probably was.

"You won't believe what I saw today," she started in and leaned in close as if she didn't want to hear. "You remember that picture we found when we were cleaning out that old storage unit of yours a few months ago? The one from when you were… what? Sixteen maybe? I saw a kid that looked like he could have been your younger brother then. He looked so much like you."

"Dad, I didn't see you come in. We need to talk about-"

Bae felt his heart sink as Henry saw who he'd been speaking to and stopped mid sentence. Tamara stared at him. "_Dad_?" she echoed and there was no going back now.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Oh there anyone out there that actually likes her? I get the feeling from Tumblr there's a person or two, but not anyone that's left a review. I think we're all in the same boat in our feelings towards her.

Next time - Chapter Ten: Game Changers, in which Tamara knows too much, Greg comes to town, and August has a rather unpleasant chat with the Blue Fairy.


	11. Game Changers

**Chapter Ten: Game Changers**

"A son? Did you know?"

Tamara gripped the phone a bit tighter in her hand and went silent because, in truth, she hadn't known. That either meant that Neal hadn't either or that she was slipping, and slipping could cost them. It had been a risk to begin with to go undercover at length like they had. He'd seen so normal, so at home in this world that if she hadn't caught him talking to August - she'd actually been tracking him, but had found herself in the perfect position to use Neal and had taken it - she'd have never believed he knew anything about it. She still wasn't entirely sure exactly where he fit into it all, but this place was teeming with magic. If the Home Office knew about it they would go ballistic. It had to be dismantled and, eventually, taken to the ground. It didn't belong.

"No," she answered before letting herself get too lost in thought. "He's acting strangely too."

"Is he on to you?"

"Maybe."

"If this place is half of what you say, we've hit the jackpot."

"It's not just that, Greg," Tamara whispered. She'd heard the name of this place before, and that had been part of what had sent her after August Booth to begin with. Storybrooke held a special and dark place in her lover's heart.

"You haven't heard anything about him, have you?"

"No, but I'm listening. You know I'll let you know as soon as I hear something."

"I'm coming up in the morning. If Neal knows but isn't saying anything, things could get dangerous. Is the kid there? The one the Home Office sent a picture over of?"

"Yeah. And get this. It's Neal's son."

"I'll be damned," Greg breathed in the other end of the line. "You picked a good one, Tamara."

"Sounds like it. Be careful coming in. If I hadn't been tracking Neal's phone I never would have found this place. It just kind of appeared."

"It does that."

"I'll see you in the morning. We'll wrap this one up and we'll be done with it. Maybe even take some time off."

Greg chuckled on the other end and they both knew how crazy that was. Their job was never ending. Magic didn't belong in their world and they'd been tasked to seek it out. They weren't alone, but they were certainly one of the more dedicated teams. It would be nice to put this one behind them though. With a place like Storybrooke shut down, they might actually be convinced to take a breather from it all.

Tamara ended the call and climbed into bed. Neal had stumbled through his excuse on why she should stay at the inn rather than than his father's house, but he hadn't joined her. She couldn't say she minded, honestly, even if it did strengthen her suspicions that he knew her secret. It gave her more room to move, more room to explore, and once they delivered the boy to the Home Office she could call off the phony engagement. She was pretty sure that taking his son away from him would handle that well enough anyway.

* * *

He didn't like her, nor did he approve. Baelfire had actually laughed when Henry told him so, but there had been plenty of assurances that Tamara would _not_ be his new stepmother. She was dangerous, and he couldn't simply let her wander free around Storybrooke. Henry had been right to think that this had to do with the foreknowledge his dad had and he promised that as long as Henry stayed away from her that he'd be safe and that he and Grandpa Gold would handle it. That had been enough for him.

Now, though, as Henry sat at the diner and waited on Emma to finish ordering their breakfast at the counter, he found himself looking up at the same woman his dad had told him to stay clear of. Tamara was smiling and if Henry hadn't known that she was a very bad person - apparently she was an unwitting henchman of Peter Pan that thought she was there to destroy magic, but he wasn't supposed to mention that to Grandpa Gold just yet - he'd have thought she looked nice. Had he not known, he might not have disliked her so much. As it was, though, he tried to close his book as discretely as possible and smile convincingly.

"Henry, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry about last night. Neal said he only recently found out that he had a son. It took me by surprise, but I don't want you to take that wrong."

"No problem. I understand."

The smile just didn't end. "What are you reading on?"

"A book."

Tamara laughed. "I can see that. What's it about?"

"Nothing. Just some fairy tales." This wasn't good. He didn't like the way that Tamara was looking at it. Her interest seemed peaked and she reached forward, trying to take hold of the book. Henry had to relinquish it if he didn't want to be too obvious about it. He watched her carefully as she opened it up and flipped through it.

"Hello again."

Tamara froze at Emma's voice and Henry could have cheered. Even though the dark haired woman's hands never left the book, she turned, that terribly friendly smile right back into place. "Emma, right? You're Henry's mom."

"And you're Neal's fiancé."

"I am. Well this is awkward."

A slow smile that was much less friendly crossed Emma's lips. "Not sure why. You're welcome to him."

Tamara's smile faded just a little at this and she laughed nervously, finally relinquishing her hold in the book. Henry took advantage of the moment and shoved it into his school bag.

"Well, I was just going to grab a quick coffee and take a look around town," Tamara said, fishing her keys out of her purse. They slipped from her fingers and Henry caught Emma's attention, trying to convey his thoughts without speaking a out loud. She only shot him a confused look as Tamara stood back up. "Got to love these things," she laughed, motioning to the large purse. "You fish around for something and by the time you find it half the contents are on the ground."

"I'd look into a smaller purse if I were you," Emma advised tightly and Tamara seemed less comfortable than before, if possible, as she scooted away and Emma slid into the opposite booth. "What was all of that?"

"She wanted to see my book. Baelfire said she's bad. We can't trust her."

"Don't call him that. It's weird."

"Fine. _Dad_ said we can't trust her."

Emma made a face, but was too smart to say anything about that and Ruby delivered their breakfast in front of them. The werewolf offered a wink to Henry and he grinned. At least _she_ was on his and Bae's side.

"Well," Emma mused around her pancakes, "why doesn't he just break it off with her then? Get her out of town?"

"She won't leave. She's here to destroy magic, and if she knows Dad's into her she'll do something bad."

"Uh-huh."

Henry frowned. "Use your super power on her. She's sneaky."

"I didn't say I trusted her, Henry."

"But you don't trust Dad either, do you?"

"If you knew him like I did, you wouldn't either. Eat up. You'll be late for school."

"Will you at least go by the shop and talk to him today? Just give him a chance to explain and _really_ listen. For me?"

Emma sighed heavily. "I have things to do today, but I'll try, Henry."

"What's so important?"

"I have a... lunch meeting I have to go to."

Henry tilted his head. "A meeting? With who?"

"Look at the time. The bus isn't going to wait on you, kid."

"You said no more lies, Emma. You promised."

Her shoulders slumped and she sighed again. "August."

"Is it like a date?"

"It's like a lunch."

"But you can't go on a date with August! Dad's here. You can-"

"Henry, your dad and I aren't getting back together. I'm sorry, kid, but it's not going to happen. Anyway, I thought you liked August."

"I do, but he's not my dad," Henry huffed as he stood up and grabbed his bag from beside the booth. "I'll see you after school. Don't forget you promised to try."

"I know. I will."

Well, that was better than nothing. After all, True Love wasn't easy. If it was, everyone would have it.

* * *

She should have dropped by the pawn shop before lunch, Emma knew. It was important to Henry that his parents were at least civil, and as long as Neal was making an effort to be the dad his son deserved, she could do that much at least. Anyway, she still needed to have a sit down with Gold and get answers about the fact that her name was written again and again in his cell and if that had anything to do with what had happened when Cora had tried to rip her heart out.

Emma hadn't made it by, though, and had found every excuse in Storybrooke to avoid doing so. Now she was back at Granny's, sitting in a booth and facing the door, waiting for a writer that was really Pinocchio all grown up. When had her life gotten so weird?

"Hey," a voice sounded from behind and August appeared, slipping into the booth opposite of her.

Emma felt a real smile perk her lips. "Hey."

"So, a bit overdue, but hey. I was trying to get you to break a curse."

"Is that all you were doing?"

August caught the unspoken question and he grinned roguishly. "Emma Swan, I do hope you aren't insinuating my intentions are anything less than honest. I'm on my best behavior."

"Why start now?"

"Well, from what I understand, Mr Gold got the lecture of a lifetime from Blue last night for turning me back without 'earning it.'"

Emma snorted. "Gold doesn't do anything without payment. What's he charge, anyway?"

"I owe him a favour," August said and she could hear the unease in his voice.

"I owe him one too. Fair warning: he likes to take his time on those."

"I don't think he will on this one. He's not my biggest fan. Probably doesn't want to have any reason to have me around."

"So why is he helping you at all?"

"Who knows, maybe he just likes pissing the Blue Fairy off."

Emma could hear the lie in his voice. There was a reason even if he wasn't saying it. She'd get it out of him. Eventually.

"So... Anything of interest happen while I was away? I hear you took an impromptu trip back home?"

They hadn't had much of a chance to talk the night before. She couldn't blame him. Marco had been overjoyed to see him and probably had just barely been able to let him out of his sight for this lunch. "Home. It's weird, it definitely didn't feel like home. I almost got eaten by an ogre."

August winced. "Standard days now, I guess. I'm up for a good adventure, but I draw the limits at things that want to rip me limb from limb and eat me."

"And? So you're good with one or the other?"

He grinned. "Just not both. Glad to be back?"

"Sort of."

"You don't sound sure."

Emma sighed, slouching down in her seat. "It's nothing, just my ex. Henry's father. He showed up and apparently he's Gold's son. Who knew? If that weren't enough, his fiancé followed him here and she's sketchy as hell and he's lying to Henry with this crazy story about time travel and who knows what else."

"Sounds like a rush," August said tightly, sipping at his coffee he'd ordered.

"More like a nightmare"

"What's the fiancé's name?"

"Tamara."

August went pale. "You've got to be kidding me."

"What? You know her?"

"No."

"I think your nose just grew a little there, Pinocchio," Emma teased.

"That never really happened," he countered and she had to laugh.

The rest of the meal went by with ease. They laughed and for just a few minutes, Emma felt a weight lift. August was good at that. He had a real talent for putting people at ease. Hours flew by, and by the time he said he should be getting back to help his papa with an order, Emma realized she needed to get over to the pawnshop if she was going to make good on her promise to Henry.

"We should do this again."

August grinned. "It's a date."

She tried not to let that smile get to her, but she thought maybe she should. It would be a nice guard against Neal's when she saw him. Despite his many, many flaws, Neal's smile had always made her a little weak in the knees.

The pawnshop was open when she arrived and the bell announced her entrance. Mr Gold looked up from where he was looking through a box and he snapped the lid shut instantly. "Miss Swan," he greeted with that smile that always made her a little nervous. "Bae's in the back if you-"

"Yeah. In a minute. First I need to talk to you."

"Me? What on earth for?"

The man could feign innocence with the best of them, but the fact that he _never_ was really was a dead giveaway. "There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about since Mary Margaret and I came home."

Gold didn't say anything, merely lifted an eyebrow in question.

"The scroll written in squid ink that you sent us after," Emma prompted and watched the slow, knowing smile cross his face.

"Ah. That. Wanted to make sure it would stick. Apparently it worked."

"Apparently," the savior grumbled. She hated when he got like this. He had more than enough information to provide answers but chose to remain cryptic.

"Was there something else then?"

"I think I used magic. When Cora attacked us."

"Oh. That is interesting, though certainly not out of the realm of possibilities. You, m'dear, are the product of True Love. There is no magic stronger in all the worlds."

"So you didn't do that?"

Gold chuckled. "No. I simply took advantage of what you are."

"Papa?" Neal's voice filtered in from the back. "We have a problem. Oh. Hey, Emma."

"Hey. Everything okay?"

"I just heard from Henry. He thinks Tamara stole his book. Did you two see her this morning?"

"Yeah, she crashed our breakfast."

"The book about the Enchanted Forest?" Gold demanded, suddenly very interested in the details.

"She was looking at it," Emma mused out loud. "What would she want with it?"

"Nothing good," Neal answered and he and his father shared a meaningful look between them.

"Seriously, how much trouble could she cause with a book? It's a weird thing to steel, but the panic written across your faces is a little bit much, don't you think?"

"There's a lot of information in there, missie," Gold snapped.

"Her first thought is not going to be that she's in a cursed town where a bunch of magical people have been tossed into. It took me nearly a year to accept it."

"Oh I remember," the shop owner grumbled.

"Papa's dagger is in the book," Neal said as if that explained everything.

Emma, though, had no clue what he was trying to get at, much less why Gold was shooting him that glare. "Okay?"

"You don't get it," Neal sighed. "You knew about it in New York, I guess I just assumed -"

"Listen, if I'm going to be able to help you at all, you're going to cut the crap about the time travel. I don't believe you and if you want my help, you'll need tell me the truth."

Neal looked at her like she'd knocked the air out of him. He opened his mouth, closed it, and then rolled his eyes. "Whatever," he growled after a second. "The dagger, the one in the book, is the same one that Papa's curse is linked to."

"Bae-"

"It's Emma, Papa. You know she was going to find out." He turned back to her, ignoring the uncomfortable look his father now wore. "Anyone that has their hands on that dagger can control him or kill him."

"Kind of a big deal. Noted. Why would Tamara know anything about this? Did you tell her too?"

"What? No! Listen, don't ask me to explain it all, because you won't believe it anyway, but Tamara's not a good person-"

"You're the one engaged to her." He shot her a look and she raised her hands in defence.

"She's part of some sort of a group that's trying to destroy all magic here in this world."

Well, that did sound like an issue. If Tamara was really doing anything remotely similar to that, then she'd hit the jackpot of all magic. "So, what, she's going to use your dad to wipe out Storybrooke or something? Could she even do that? Couldn't you just say no?"

"It's not that simple," Gold said quietly.

"The short answer is no he couldn't stop it," Neal answered. "I don't think she knows what the dagger does, but if she were to find it she could do some real damage even by accident."

Emma pulled in a deep breath. "Okay, say I believe you, just for the sake of argument. You think she stole the book to find the dagger?"

"I think she might have taken it to get a better idea who everyone is and how to destroy the town."

"Picked a good one, didn't you?"

There was something in Neal's face that made guilt bubble up inside of her at the words. "Only one," he murmured, barely audible. He cleared his throat after a moment and straighten. "Anyway, we need to get it back."

She watched him carefully. "Okay," she said slowly. "What do you need me to do?"

* * *

August Booth had spent his days in many different ways since coming to the Land Without Magic as a small child. He'd been an orphan who knew where his father was, just not how to get to him. He'd been a kid on the streets, in between homes, and finally, he'd been a young man that realized he had a talent for lying and put it to use by creating fantastically woven stories that people would buy up as soon as the book hit the shelves. He'd traveled all across America and then when that had bored him, he'd ventured out. All along, there was a little blonde girl that hovered at the edge of his mind. She haunted his dreams and broached his thoughts at the most inopportune times. He'd learned to push her aside, but somehow she'd always managed to creep back.

Now he was all too happy to think about her. This place might be a little dull at first glance, but it most certainly had its perks. Especially now that he was human and could enjoy them. There wasn't a beach in sight, but there were some nice woods, and most of all, his father was here. He'd been running, August realized now, from place to place with a new lie following him that he worked into a new story and sold to finance his next big adventure. It had all led him back here, just as she said it would. Just as she'd promised.

So why did the sound of her voice behind him make him flinch now? Right. Because the Blue Fairy was _very_ unhappy with his choice of help.

"Pinocchio, we need to talk."

August forced a lazy smile to his lips as he turned, not letting on for a second that fear was wrapping around him as if the strings he'd worn as a puppet were wrapped around his neck and threatening to cut off his air supply. He'd never understood as a child, but he should have been afraid of her then. He hadn't realized until he'd come across her as an adult that her expectations, all the strings attached to what she wanted from him, were impossible to keep up with. He'd tried, really he had, but he wasn't perfect. He was only… well, mostly human. "Blue, most people just call me August these days."

She offered him that tight smile that didn't seem as friendly as he remembered it as a little boy. "You sought out the Dark One's help."

"I thought once the curse was reversed and Emma believed I'd be returned to normal, but I wasn't."

"The Dark One never provides support without a hefty price, Pinocchio. Your selfless action to save your father's life was what allowed me to transform you into a human when you were a child. A similar action might have opened up a similar pathway now."

"So what, I should have just waited until my papa was on death's door and hopped right in there?"

The look she gave him told him that she didn't appreciate the lightness of his tone. "You were meant to guide Emma, and yet even when I set you back on your path you abandoned her again."

"What was I supposed to do, follow her to prison?"

"You were supposed to be there for her."

"Neal's not a bad guy, you know. He would have stuck it out with her, even if he'd known. It probably would have been better for her to-"

"It most certainly would not have been better for her," Blue answered sharply. "Baelfire was once many things, but his life was tainted by the darkness his father left on him. Even now he is covered in it. If you could see what I see in him, or feel what I feel, you would understand. You would not have sought the Dark One and his son's help above mine."

"Okay, I get it, you don't think I should have gone to Gold for help. Noted."

"I don't think you understand the weight of what you've done. What you now owe him could be more than you're willing to pay."

"Kind of like your promises?" August snapped and he pushed the fears and the threats back. He'd spent too long being told if he did this, things would get better, or if he simply acted that way. All he wanted now was all he'd ever wanted at his core: to be with his father. "At least I know he's good for his word."

She looked offended at this. "Fairies don't lie, Pinocchio."

"You did. To Snow White about the wardrobe."

"Because your father refused-"

"Don't push this off on him. The words left your lips."

The Blue Fairy stiffened. "He's already begun to taint you."

"Listen, what's done is done. No changing that now. I'm going to keep an eye on Emma. This time for sure."

"Don't allow Baelfire back into her life, Pinocchio. There is still too much she must do."

August stiffened at this. "Listen, Emma's going to choose who she wants, not who I want her to choose, but if it's all the same, I don't think she wants Baelfire in her life anymore. Either way, though, it's _her_ choice, not yours. Not his. Not mine."

He didn't let her say anything as he turned. She'd always told him to be selfless, brave, and true, and that's what he was choosing right now. No one had a right to decide who Emma loved but Emma, not even the Blue Fairy.

* * *

She had spent the better part of the day pouring over the book. At first glance, it looked like a book of children's stories, but after a closer inspection Tamara started to see faces that she'd seen around town that day. The old woman who ran the inn, her granddaughter that waited tables, and even the woman that the party had been thrown for. She saw similarities as she kept searching and saw more and more as she continued.

A cup of coffee appeared over her shoulder and she took it, not bothering to look up as she flipped the pages back and forth. "If everything that's shown in this book came over when they were brought here then these are the key points we're looking for. There's this vault here-" she said, pointing to one page and then flipping back- "and this knife. There are fairies all through here that use wands for magic and I think I saw one of them dressed like a nun."

"How'd they get here anyway? Does it say?" Greg asked as he took a seat next to her.

"This lady cursed them, from what it looks like."

"That's the same lady that took my dad. I know it is. Regina. She's the mayor."

"She's also the Evil Queen."

"Fitting."

"Did you bring the equipment?"

Greg nodded, making a move to pull something from the bag that was sitting back on the bed. "The Home Office said it will pick up on anything that registers a three or above on the scale and should be able to estimate what level the magic is resonating at."

Tamara took the offered object and studied it. A flip of the switch showed a digital map of the town, lights highlighting where the higher-level magical objects were. They ranged from a three up to ten, the highest on the scale. "Too bad it doesn't tell us what each is."

"That place might be a good one to start," Greg said, pointing to a collection of dots on the map over one building, but Tamara shook her head and shifted the view of the map, showing the street.

"I think that's Neal's dad's place."

"He owns a pawn shop? Shady."

"Neal always did say his dad was an interesting soul. Look at this. We have two ten-ratings. Here… it looks like the mines, and here."

"Is that the library?"

"It may be the clock tower over it. It looked closed down when I went by earlier today. We should start there and check out the mines after nightfall."

"Sounds like a plan. What do you expect to find?"

Tamara pursed her lips together and flipped through the storybook again, eyeing a couple of the pages she'd marked. "Something powerful," she said and snapped it closed.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had moved the dagger to the clock tower after August had discovered the location when they'd first met and he'd fooled the sorcerer into thinking he was his son. Before that day, only one other person had known where he'd hidden it, and he hadn't told Belle until she had accepted the keys to the library and had chosen to move into the caretaker's apartment there. He'd offered to move it again at the time, fearing that she might be caught in the middle should anyone discover its location, but she'd told him it was hardly necessary and that it seemed a safer and less conspicuous hiding place than anywhere in his own home or shop. Now, as he clicked his phone shut after warning her of the possible danger ahead, he felt that same dread set deep. She was brave, his Belle, and had assured him that she would grab the knife and take it straight to his shop, locking all the doors. He'd set up a spell up on the shop that only he could undo and it would snap into effect as soon as she crossed the threshold. She would be safe.

"I think it's time you let us know exactly what this Tamara woman is up to," Rumplestiltskin directed towards his son and Bae cringed a little and glanced over to Emma who was staring straight ahead as they approached the diner.

"I'll talk to Granny about getting a key and see if she's in," the savior said and was off before any agreements were made.

Bae sighed. "She's never going to believe me."

"That's really not the issue at hand, son."

"Right. Tamara. She thinks she's working for an organization out to destroy magic. She's actually working for someone else… unwittingly, I think. She's after someone else as sort of a side mission."

"How did you get mixed up with someone like that?"

"I didn't know who she was. I liked her. I thought I loved her, but she's been lying since day one."

"Who is she working for then? What is she after?"

"Don't freak out." His father shot him a look as they entered the diner and Bae sighed. "Henry."

Rumplestiltskin could feel the cold dread setting deep and he paused at the first table, eyes fixated on his son. "Why?"

"She doesn't know it yet, but she's working for Pan."

"Like Peter Pan?" an unexpected voice chirped. "You said he was really bad, right?"

Two sets of dark eyes jerked over to land on Henry who was grinning ear to ear, looking like he'd uncovered some secret and was quite proud of himself for doing so. Peter Pan was after Rumplestiltskin's grandson. Nothing about that could bode well for their future, and if this woman was a part of it, Rumple would be damned if he let her live. He couldn't quite go into that now, with his grandson standing there within earshot, but plans began to form in his mind on just how to protect him.

"Hey, buddy. I thought I told you to head on home and we'd take care of this?" Bae said as he pulled his son into a hug, the tension surrounding him showing that he knew just how difficult this could become.

"I wanted to help. So Tamara's working for Pan? We're going to stop her, right?"

"She's out right now and I've got the key," Emma called, dangling the set of keys that Granny kept for all the rooms. "Henry, you're helping Ruby put together the dwarves' dinner in the back."

"But I want to help!" the boy argued, but none of them were giving and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

Rumplestiltskin shared a meaningful look with his son before following Emma towards the back, Bae at his heels. They moved up the stairs and into the hall with a long stretch of rooms, finding the one that she was staying in. The lock clicked and the door swung open, revealing a neat and tidy room that hardly looked to be rented out by a spy trying to destroy magic and steal away the Dark One's grandson. The three of them stepped in and Rumple immediately stretched his hand out, magic leaping from his fingertips and searching. Emma, though, was already in the process of making use of her own set of talents.

The savior of Storybrooke bent down against the floor after walking the length of it, finding a loose board and she pulled it up, reaching in and digging around until she pulled a very familiar book up. "Jackpot."

Bae stepped closer and they looked at their son's book. Even from where he stood, Rumplestiltskin could tell it had been studied, the pages marked by sticky notes and bent for future reference. He watched with a growing unease building rapidly and Emma held the book up for easier inspection. "This your dagger?"

"It is," the Dark One said slowly and he reached for cellphone. He had to warn Belle. He needed to make sure she was out of the library and safely in his shop where she wouldn't be hurt. He needed to -

"Papa?" Bae's voice echoed and before he realized it, his son was standing right in front of him, one hand on his arm and a worried expression on his face.

Rumple blinked, finally realizing he'd dropped the phone and it had clattered down to the wooden flooring. The sensation had hit him so hard, so fast, that it had immobilized him for a moment and a terrible shiver made its way down his spine and he closed his eyes, reminding himself to breathe. "Someone has it," he whispered.

"Has what, Papa?" Bae asked, but by his tone he already knew.

"My dagger."

* * *

TBC

Notes: Well, this is my moving weekend. Thankfully I've written ahead enough that I should still be able to post on Monday as well. Wish me luck!

Next time - Chapter Eleven: In the Hands of the Enemy, in which Tamara and Greg have the dagger, protecting Henry becomes the priority, and Rumplestiltskin calls in a favour.


	12. In the Hands of an Enemy

**Chapter Eleven: In the Hands of an Enemy**

Belle had been knee deep in organizing children's books when Rumple had called. She could hear the strain in his voice even before he'd said what the problem was. The dagger. Someone knew about the dagger and he believed there was a chance they'd be coming for it. They'd spoken about it when she'd moved into the little apartment just above the library. He hadn't thought she would be safe with it there and she'd pointed out that it was a much less likely place for anyone to look than his shop or home would be. She'd also believed, at the time, that he was letting his paranoia get the better of him. No one would come looking for the thing here. No one would think to.

Now she was weaving her way between shelves half-filled with books and to the elevator that would lead up to the tower itself. Get the dagger, go straight to the shop. It was an easy enough plan and she was determined to be useful in all of this. He'd sent her away when he thought a terrible sorceress was coming through Storybrooke's wishing well, but now she could provide some sort of support other than her keen ability to come up with the right book to find an answer in. Anyway, she'd promised to call him if anything went wrong and he'd be there in an instant.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened, letting Belle loose to the base of the winding stairs that led up to the space behind Storybrooke's clock. She took those ten or twelve steps in a hurry and reached the back of the face. The glass was loose next to where the hand currently rested and she pulled it free, the motion releasing a cloaking spell. It shimmered and the dagger became visible, strapped to the hand itself. A smile took hold as she reached out for it, the knife coming loose into her hands and she nearly dropped it at the sudden weight. She'd never held the dagger before, but it was heavier than it looked, as if all the power that it contained was made clear in that and she tightened her grip on it. She hardly wanted to explain to Rumple that she'd been so startled by it that she'd dropped it out the tower window.

Belle froze as the gears started turning in the elevator and she realized it was opening. She hadn't heard it go down or even back up, she'd been so wrapped up in her task, but the doors were sliding open now and a man and woman were exiting. She gripped the dagger tightly, dropping her hand behind her back in any hopes that they might think she was there for any other reason. She received no such luck as the woman leveled a gun at her and smiled, though it was anything but friendly.

"We're looking for something that you keep her."

The librarian narrowed her eyes, tilting her head to the side. "I'm afraid you're going to have to be a bit more specific. This is a library. We have quite a few things you might be looking for."

The man snorted. "You're really funny. Do you see the gun, lady?"

"I do, and I'm sure this would go much more smoothly if you'd put it away. I'm hardly armed to hurt you." Well, technically she was. The knife was probably pretty sharp, and she could summon Rumple as long as she held it, but that required the woman not shooting her first.

They were making their way up the stairs and Belle stepped back. She couldn't wait any longer. Rumplestiltskin's name was almost off her tongue when the man rushed forward and she felt a cloth go over her nose, a sweet smell filling it and a strange sort of sensation spread through her extremities. Numbness inched through her and she heard the dagger clatter before her knees went weak and her attacker eased her to the floor, forcing her to breathe whatever potion they'd obtained and her vision began to sim.

"It's the knife," the woman said, though her voice sounded as if it might have been coming from the far end of a long tunnel.

"You said that was big, didn't you?"

"Certainly seemed that way. We'll call the Home Office and see what they want done with it."

"What about her?"

Belle blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. She couldn't tell if the cloth was still pressed against her face or not. Everything was moving in slow motion and felt numb. She couldn't pull herself together to focus, even as the answer came and she felt herself slipping into darkness.

* * *

"What does someone having your dagger mean?" Emma asked immediately, but Bae knew. It meant that Tamara had the ability to control the Dark One. She could control his father. He met his papa's gaze and he saw the fear resting just beneath the forced calm.

Baelfire tightened his grip. "You with us?"

"Yes. Belle was at the library."

"Maybe she got the dagger?" Emma offered.

"No," Bae's papa said softly. "I'd know if it were her."

There was really no way to know exactly what Tamara knew at this point, but if she understood the power she held, she could command Rumplestiltskin to bring Henry to her. There'd be no way to stop him short of getting the dagger back. "Papa, can you tell if she knows what she's doing? Does she know how to control you?"

"I doubt it'll take her long to figure it out," he answered roughly. "I won't hurt Henry, Bae. I'll make sure of it. Bring him up?"

"What if she's already controlling him?" Emma asked. "How would we know?"

"I'd know," Rumplestiltskin assured her.

"It's okay, Emma. I'll get Henry if you'll check on Belle."

"I don't think-"

She'd always been stubborn, but this was getting ridiculous. "I can't do everything, you know."

Emma blinked at him, a little taken back by his tone, and while he felt a twinge of guilt from it, she nodded and raced out the door and towards the exit, shouting at Granny to call her immediately if Tamara showed back up. Bae, in turn, motioned for Henry.

"What's going on?"

A lie, something to cover up the darkness of the situation, nearly rolled off of Baelfire's tongue, but he stopped himself. His kid was strong and brave. He had the Heart of the Truest Believer resting in his chest and had brought Emma to Storybrooke and made her believe by taking a leap of faith in her when she wouldn't in him. If anyone deserved to hear the truth, it was Henry. "Can you keep a secret, kid?"

"Definitely."

Bae spoke in hushed tones. The last thing they needed was for the whole town to know what was going on, and it always started with the diner. "Tamara got your grandpa's dagger."

Henry's eyes went wide with that knowledge. "What? How?" He stopped and went a little pale, even as Bae took hold of his arm and urged him up the stairs. "My book. She found out because she got my book and now Grandpa Gold is in trouble."

They rounded the corner and Bae's father was waiting in the hall, his expression nervous, but Bae had faith that he'd find a way to warn them if he felt the dagger's pull on his soul, commanding obedience to a master other than himself. Henry didn't even pause when he saw him, but sprinted forward, wrapping his arms around his grandpa's middle and hugged him. "I'm sorry!"

Rumplestiltskin froze at the sudden contact and Bae watched his expression soften and grow almost tortured as he put a tentative arm around his grandson. "It's not your fault."

"But she got my book and now she's going to… What _is_ she going to do?"

"I fear that if she discovered what my dagger does that she might try to come after you, Henry," Rumplestiltskin said gently, taking a knee and placing one hand on either of the boy's shoulders. "But I won't let her hurt you. Do you trust me?"

"Yes," Henry said without missing a beat and Bae moved closer.

"What can you do to protect him?"

"There's a spell that I never thought I'd use. I never had a reason to before, but it protects the person it's cast on from all dark magic. Even if Tamara controls me, she can't use me to harm you. Bae? I'll need your help, son."

"What can I do?"

His papa stood up again, slowly and carefully so that he didn't put too much pressure on his bad ankle. "I'm well versed in light magic, but I'm very limited in what I can cast. Come here?" He took hold of Baelfire's wrist and directed him to where he'd been gripping Henry's shoulder just a moment before. Bae could feel tinges of magic already working there and it was amazing. The warmth caused his whole hand to tingle and his father placed his own hand over his. "I'm going to have to use you to cast it. It'll keep my own magic from tainting it. Will you do that for me?"

"Yeah. Anything to save Henry."

Rumplestiltskin smiled. "I thought as much."

Bae felt his son's eyes on him as his papa began to cast the spell in full. The groundwork had already been laid while they were speaking, but now the magic worked through Baelfire and it nearly took his breath away at first. It swirled and mixed, using him as a filter, and finally a soft glow enveloped Henry and Rumplestiltskin's eyes opened again, a soft breath leaving him. "There," he said. "No no darkness can harm you. Not even me."

"Wow," Henry whispered.

"That's… impressive, Papa."

"I'd wager with the right training, you'd be able to cast it without batting an eye," Rumplestiltskin answered with a strained smile, and Bae wondered if trying to cast light magic had taken that much out of him or if Tamara had already begun trying to use the dagger. "We should go check on Belle."

"Right. Henry, go downstairs and stay here. Do I have your word?"

"Yeah, Dad, I promise."

Bae bent down and pressed a kiss to the top of his son's head. "Thanks, buddy. We'll be back before you know it and everything will be okay."

"I know," Henry answered with a smile. It was amazing how much faith that kid had. Bae just wished some of it would wear off on him and he could push back the growing feeling of dread that was settling inside of him now.

* * *

The inn had been compromised, that much was obvious when they'd tried to return. Tamara had been right when she had thought Neal was on to her and it seemed that he and his son's mother were teaming up to come after them. Let them come, she thought. She and Greg had been trained for this. They were ready and they were dedicated to their cause.

She had found a cabin in the woods on a map, and Greg had promised to meet her there after seeing what he could retrieve from the inn. Tamara jimmied the lock and found the place cold and silent, as if it hadn't seen anyone in quite some time. There was wood, though, and matches and the fire was started in no time, lighting the front room and she sat in one of the dust-covered chairs to make her call.

Her eyes remained fixated on the knife set on the old, wooden chest just to the side and the light of the fire caught the steel. _Rumplestiltskin_ was clearly written across the blade and she almost laughed. She'd seen it in the book, but had been so determined to find her first lead on it that she hadn't really thought about the name too much. Rumplestiltskin, if she remembered correctly, was the name of the little imp that spun straw into gold and made deals for babies. Well, the Evil Queen had taken Greg's dad from him, so who was to say that a baby-snatching trickster couldn't be mixed in with this lot?

Tamara frowned as the phone beeped in her ear and she looked down to see it had dropped the call. There was no service out here in the middle of nowhere. She tried again and again, but nothing worked. She paced the length of the cabin and walked out as far as she dared, but nothing worked. It was like she'd been cut off from the outside world. Come to think of it, she'd never received a phone call from Neal. She'd only called in. Maybe whatever magic kept these people within the Storybrooke limits also kept calls from going out.

Greg made his way to the cabin perhaps an hour after she arrived, carrying his things and hers. "They'd already made a grab for the book. It wasn't in the room. Did you get ahold of the Home Office?"

"No cell reception."

"Guess we're on our own then. What do you want to do with the thing?"

"I've got a pretty good fire going. Do you think it would melt it down?"

Greg shrugged. "It's worth a try."

* * *

Healing was really the limit of Rumplestiltskin's talent with light magic. It set in direct opposition with what he was - with what his curse made him - and trying anything beyond healing had taught him a quick lesson early on. Even using Bae as a filter for the spell, allowing his son to lighten in for him had bordered far too close to light magic for his curse's liking and it left the Dark One feeling a little woozy. It didn't matter, though. It _couldn't_ matter. He'd protected Henry, now he needed to know why Belle hadn't called him.

The front door of the library was shut and locked, just as Belle often left it when she was the only one inside. The back door that allowed entrance or exit from the alleyway, though, was left ajar, as if someone had forced it open. Rumplestiltskin pulled a deep breath in through his nose, but it did nothing to ease the frantic beating of his heart against his ribs. The inside was lit and books were stacked all around, halfway worked through and organized to their appropriate shelf. It was silent and still. Bae moved past him to look through the sections of the library.

"It looks like the elevator is up right now," he said as he stopped next to it, examining the controls. "That leads to the clock tower, right?"

"It does," his papa said unsteadily and Bae pressed the button the bring it back down. The old elevator that was meant to seem much more than it's thirty or so years that it had actually been in existence creaked and cried out in protest as it made its way down. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the doors opened and the two men stepped inside.

They reopened just a moment later and Emma's voice could be heard from up in the loft. "We're up here."

Bae took the steps two at a time and Rumplestiltskin followed as quickly as his limp would allow, finding Emma and Belle seated on the floor, Belle looking a bit dazed. Emma was speaking lowly to her, asking her a few questions, but as soon as Rumple reached the top of the stairs Belle turned wide eyes on him and her voice quaked. "Rumple… I'm so sorry."

He had already known that the dagger had left her possession, so all that had been left was to make sure she was safe before finding a way to retrieve it. He made his way to her then and dropped to the ground, his body protesting as he did and he reached a hand out to her to touch the side of her face. She leaned into the touch and moved forward suddenly, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I'm so sorry. I lost it. It's all my fault."

Rumplestiltskin pulled her close, shushing her and stroking her hair with one hand. "Don't worry, dear. We'll get it back. I'm just glad you're alright. I feared… when you didn't call…"

"Looks like she used chloroform to knock her out," Emma said as she held up a rag with two fingers.

"It was a he, actually," Belle murmured, finally releasing her death grip on her True Love. "A man and a woman. The woman had a gun and the man came up behind me just as I was going to call for you, Rumple. They wanted your dagger." She paused and her clear blue eye turned to meet brown. "What can they do with it?"

"Quite a bit, I fear, if they figure out how to use it. Bae, do you know who this man might be?"

"Greg Mendell. I didn't even know he was in town yet. I'm not sure exactly what his story is, but I think Regina killed his dad or something. I don't know."

"Fantastic," his father breathed.

"I see they're still not controlling you," Emma murmured. "Any chance they won't figure it out?"

"One might hope." Rumplestiltskin eased himself to his feet, offering a hand to Belle. She stood with him, swaying a bit and looking more than a little groggy from the drug she'd been exposed to. "Are you alright, my dear?"

"I think so."

"Okay," Bae said and Rumple could see his son's clever brain working as quickly as it could. "We know that she won't go back to the inn. Greg probably grabbed her stuff, so we can cross that one off the list. As long as we let Ruby and Granny know, Henry should be safe there right? We can go back to the shop and regroup."

Rumplestiltskin nodded slowly. "He should be safe there, yes."

"That's if they haven't left town already," Emma countered. "They can, right? It's not like they've been caught up in the curse or anything. They're not stuck here."

"They haven't gone anywhere," Bae said darkly. "They won't leave until they have Henry."

"Then our priority is to keep him safe," Rumpelstiltskin said tightly.

"What about your dagger?" Emma asked.

"No one is safe until I have it back in my possession."

"Won't the spell you put on Henry hold, Papa?" Bae asked carefully.

"It should. Yes, it should." He didn't like the feeling of the dagger being in someone else's possession. It was like a wet blanket had been draped over him, dampening his senses. Some of that might have been the light magic he had been using, but he was certain most of it was the fact that he did not have his own dagger currently. How had Zoso functioned like this for however long he'd been the Dark One? "Bae, you'll need to make a call to your formerly wooden friend. Tell him I'm calling in my favour."

"Wait, August? You know August?" Emma demanded and Bae offered her a lopsided smile.

"Yeah, we've got a bit of history."

"I'd love to hear _that_ story."

"You really wouldn't. It's long and involves him stealing a lot of money from me amongst other things."

She snorted, but didn't sound shocked at the accusation.

"Rumple, are you alright?" Belle asked from his side and her voice helped push back some of the fog that was threatening him.

"Yes, for now."

She reached up, her touch hesitant, but she rested her palm against his cheek and tipped up on her toes to press a kiss to the opposite side of his face. They hadn't shared a full True Love's kiss since she'd told him that she never wanted to see him again, but even these pecks sent a flood through him and he found himself turning towards her, catching her hand that lingered against his face and holding it gently. "I love you," he confessed softly.

"And I love you," she whispered. "Everything will be alright, Rumple. We'll get it back and everything will be alright."

"I know."

"You don't sound like you do."

He tried to smile for her and she leaned up, her lips pressing tentatively against his. True Love's magic spread through him, flooding his system and pushing back the darkness even of his own curse. Storybrooke's strange sort of magic kept his curse from breaking under it, but it bent and rattled under the force of their love.

Bae cleared his throat awkwardly and motioned to the stairs. "We should get going. I'll give August a call on the way to the diner. We will meet you at the shop. That okay?"

"Yes, that should be fine," Rumple answered and Belle squeezed his hand. She loved him, and that gave him courage.

* * *

Between his lunch with Emma and the impromptu conversation with the Blue Fairy, August hadn't had nearly as much time as he would have liked to spend with his father. They had just settled in to work on a couple of orders and talk when his cell had buzzed and he almost hadn't answered it. Rumplestiltskin's terms echoed in his mind though, and he knew that they'd learned Tamara was already in town. It wasn't surprising, but it was irritating.

Those were the thoughts swirling around in his mind when he knocked on the back door to the pawn shop, finding Neal peeking out of the window before he opened it. "Took your time, huh?"

"I was helping my father with his workload, thank you very much," the former puppet said as he stepped in. "Let me guess. Tamara is back."

"You already knew that," Emma's voice wafted in and August felt a knot growing in the pit of his stomach. He'd told his papa about his run in with the Blue Fairy and had asked his advice on how to handle it. He liked Emma, he had since he'd approached her in Storybrooke and had tried to drag her kicking and screaming to the side of the believers, but they hadn't had time to fuel the flames of any sort of romance that might have come about. Lunch that day had been nice and if he was going to put down roots somewhere, he thought he should go all the way, but the confrontation with Blue made him think that if it ever came out - and it always came out, sooner or later - that Emma would think that he was simply doing the fairy's bidding. It wouldn't have been the first time. Baby steps were needed here. One at a time. His papa had told him to be honest. If he cared about her, he should tell her, but he shouldn't hide what the Blue Fairy was trying to do either. Emma had a right to know that someone was pulling on the strings of her life from the background.

"I did. And it sounds like dealing with her was the favour just waiting to be asked. And you thought it'd be hanging over my head forever."

The blonde rolled her eyes as she entered the office. "Just my luck that he hasn't had to call a favour to get me to help. It has to do with my kid and the rest of the town. Guess that's what I get for being the savior, huh?"

August grinned. "Wait, what as that? What are you again?"

"Shut up, puppet boy," she snapped without too much malice, but she didn't pull the punch to his arm too much. She turned to Neal. "You sure your dad is okay? He's looking a little off up there."

Neal frowned, but didn't answer and started towards the front of the shop. August tilted his head to the side in question. "What's up with Gold?"

"Tamara took his dagger."

Well, on the list of bad things that could have happened, this rated at the top. "Hell. Listen, Emma, this isn't really the time, but I do need to talk to you about something when we both get a second."

"Sure, but can it wait until after we make sure that Tamara doesn't use the Dark One to destroy Storybrooke?"

"Probably best," August agreed and followed her into the front. She hadn't been exaggerating when she had said he didn't look well. Rumplestiltskin looked perfectly ill as he sat forward on an antique chair, his face flushed and leaning heavily with his elbows braced against his knees. Neal was knelt down in front of him, worry evident, and the Dark One shook his head in answer to some question or another.

He looked up, gaze a bit hazy, but it came to focus on August. "Good to see you keep your end of a bargain when properly incentivized," he rasped, his voice rough and strained.

"Yeah, that and I just keep my word."

"We both know that's not true. I take it Emma filled you in?"

"Yeah. Any idea where Tamara might be?"

Neal stood, answering for his father when the elder man looked ready to tip out of the chair and pass out on the floor. A woman that August had only seen in passing remained knelt on his other side, gripping one hand like her life or his depended on it. "Pop thinks she's out at his cabin, actually." His tone turned just a little darker. "You know where that is, right?"

"Yeah. I've been there." He looked over at Rumplestiltskin. "You okay?"

"Best I can tell, she's attempting to destroy the dagger. It won't work, but that doesn't mean it's a pleasant experience."

That certainly looked like an understatement. The Dark One was pale under the flush that was spread across his face, sweat beginning to build against his temple and he was trembling. He tried to clear his throat and it came out in a shaky cough. As August inched closer, his curiosity outweighing his well-placed unease around the shop owner and even when he stopped choking on the air he was trying to pull into his lungs, the wheezing sound that was left didn't instill confidence.

Rumplestiltskin turned a glare up at him, but any sharp words he'd planned on were cut short and his eyes grew a little larger as if someone had said something that had taken him by surprise. And then he was gone, simply vanished from the chair that he had been sitting in and the woman that been sitting with him - Belle, he thought her name was - let out a small sound of surprise.

The shop was silent then and August looked around, startled by the general lack of reaction that someone had vanished from the room without so much as a word. Emma, thankfully, seemed as lost as he was on it. "Where the hell did he go?"

Neal sighed, running a hand through grey-flecked hair. "My guess? Tamara said his name. She has the dagger. She can summon him."

"I'm going to say that's not good," August murmured and the man that was sometimes his friend, sometimes not shot him a half-hearted glare.

"No, that means she knows she can control him. She'll try to use him to get to Henry."

* * *

TBC

Nots: Well this has been a crazy weekend. I moved apartments and it had been long enough since the last time I moved that I had forgotten how much I really do hate moving lol. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now, but I wanted to make sure that I posted this chapter early so that I didn't forget. If there are any glaring grammatical mistakes in it (or otherwise), just drop me a line. I'm still about half asleep while editing it down.

Next time - Chapter Twelve: Anchor Against the Darkness, in which they attempt to rescue Rumple, August tries to be honest with Emma, and Bae finds himself in more trouble than he expected.


	13. Anchor Against the Darkness

**Chapter Twelve: Anchor Against the Darkness**

Apparently there was a difference in choosing to allow oneself to be summoned and being yanked across town by the dagger. If Rumplestiltskin had been in pain to begin with, _that_ most certainly hadn't helped. He landed hard, his cane left leaning against a shelf where he'd left it, and when he reappeared his ankle rolled and gave way under him instantly, sending him crashing to the ground. It took a moment to catch his breath again, but when he did he looked up, pulling himself to his feet and shifting his weight carefully so that his right foot merely balanced him and didn't hold in any actual weight.

"You," Tamara said.

"Were you expecting someone else, dearie?" the Dark One asked, his voice pitching up at the end. He took half a second to look around. They weren't in his cabin. They may have been at one time, but they'd moved and he couldn't imagine when that had been. His senses were so muddled after their absurd attempt to destroy the dagger - probably to burn it, by the way the fever had hit him so suddenly - that he was having trouble reading all the usual magical tells. He did see his dagger clutched in Tamara's hand, but he didn't dare make a go for it. Something instinctually told him that the curse wouldn't allow that anyway. He had to be smarter than them, though from what he knew, that wouldn't be difficult.

"This is Neal's dad," Tamara was telling her partner in crime and the man took a step closer to Rumplestiltskin. "Greg, don't. That book said he's dangerous."

"That book said that the knife controls him too, didn't it? I wonder to what degree."

Tamara turned to look directly at him. "How does it work? Do you have to do everything I say?"

Rumplestiltskin straightened his shoulders, feeling the pull of his curse demanding an answer. "Mostly," he said after a moment.

"What are the exceptions?" Greg demanded.

"Well there's one. I don't have to tell _you_ a damn thing, you arrogant little-"

"Stop!"

Rumplestiltskin froze, arm outstretched and magic sparking in the air. He couldn't move, couldn't even pull back until she gave him the go-ahead. How _did_ Zoso live like this?

"That's amazing," Greg managed, circling him like he was looking at an art piece. He didn't pull back until Rumple snarled and Tamara took a step forward, the dagger raised.

"Can the dagger be destroyed?"

"No."

Tamara and Greg exchanged a look. "What happens if you die?"

"I don't."

"Die? Are you saying you're immortal?"

"Something like that."

She pursed her lips together and studied him. He'd managed to stand straight again, one hand against a bit of railing for support without his cane. She didn't know how to control him with the dagger, not really.

"Okay. We can't destroy it, can't kill you, so we're going to use you. Bring us Neal's son."

Rumplestiltskin felt his curse's demand on him, but in the same motion the spell he'd cast through Bae to protect Henry kept him from teleporting directly to the boy. The two magics warred with each other for a moment, but as he had intended, the protection spell made stronger with two generations of blood magic won out and put a stop to the command, sending the Dark One to his knees as he tried to steady his breathing. "I can't," he finally gasped out.

"Why not?"

"He's protected. Call it off. You're asking the impossible."

"Don't. He's just stalling," Greg cut in and suddenly seemed much braver now that Rumple was on the floor. "Go get him and bring him to us. Tamara, tell him again."

"Bring us Henry," Tamara said sternly.

The order lashed through him like a knife and a pained sound left him as his arms began to tremble, threatening to give under his weight and send him fully to the floor. Fish, he realized distantly as his mind began to have trouble putting solid thoughts together around the pain. He smelled fish. He was down by the docks.

"I don't think he's faking it, Greg. He's obviously done something to protect the kid. It's his grandson. Maybe it doesn't work on blood relations or something. Fine, you don't have to bring him here."

All at once the command went silent in his mind and his arms gave way under him, sending him crashing to the floor. He groaned, curling into himself just for a moment until the pain subsided. He reached up and found his nose bloodied by the strain of the magic coursing through him and the stress of his curse's demands.

"He's useless to us then," Greg grumbled. "We can't destroy it, we can't use him to get the kid."

He paused, and Rumplestiltskin felt his eyes on him. He'd stopped trembling and now came the part where he tried to convince himself that he could stand. Greg's feet moved directly into his line of sight. "How powerful are you?"

Rumplestiltskin snarled, refusing to answer a question his curse hadn't forced him to and he felt Tamara tighten her grip on his dagger. "Answer him."

The command hit him as he was trying to pull himself to his knees and he felt the floor sway beneath him. He turned his eyes upward and pulled his feet painfully beneath him. In the Enchanted Forest his full access to his curse allowed him to use his right leg like it had never been shattered and maimed, but here it took a great deal of effort to mask the pain and he'd regret it in the end. Still, he did have his pride. "Powerful, dearie," he growled out as he squared his thin shoulders.

"Powerful enough to destroy the whole town?"

Rumple froze, eyes a little wider than before. Tamara opened her mouth, but the command was clear. "Yes," the a Dark One replied quietly, feeling a terrible dread claw at his insides. It was worse than the pain of his curse lashing out at him for his rebellion against it.

"Then it's settled," Tamara said tightly. "Grab the kid and go. We'll leave him with the command on our way out."

"First," Greg said and turned a look that was anything but pleasant on him. "What do you know about my father?"

* * *

Nothing about this was good. Neal had assured her that his father had protected Henry, but Emma had no idea what that really meant. She'd broken a curse and been swept away to the Enchanted Forest only to fight her way back, but magic was still a foreign concept to her. Could Gold break through his own protections if someone ordered him to, or did the fact that he'd been the caster keep him from breaking it?

Neal hadn't been able to explain it, just assure her that his father had Henry covered. His faith in the man he'd spent most of his life running from was strange, and a very small part of her mind wanted to toy with the idea that he'd told her the truth about time travel. Or whatever the hell he wanted to call it. It didn't matter right now. Now they had to make sure Gold didn't hurt Henry.

She stuffed her phone back in her pocket, the text having just buzzed through. "David and Mary Margaret are going to meet us at the cabin."

Neal paused and Emma was reminded just how clever he was. He'd been the master and she the student in their Bonnie and Clyde act. She'd picked it up quickly, but he'd always been smart about it.

Belle stopped. "What's wrong, Bae?"

"They didn't go to the cabin before," he murmured.

"Before?" August echoed.

Gold's girlfriend tilted her head in question. "That doesn't mean something hasn't changed, Bae. Rumple said they were at the cabin."

"I know... But it's a hunch."

"Neal, there may not be time for it," Emma said tightly. He was smart, but she couldn't rely in just that now. Not when their son's life might be in danger.

"I know. You guys go to the cabin, I'm going to check the docks."

"I'll go with you," Belle offered, but he shook his head.

"No, it's just a hunch. If I'm wrong, I don't want to pull anyone away that can help. I'll call you if I find anything there."

Belle nodded slowly, obviously not entirely convinced. "Okay."

"Neal?" Emma called a he started off and he turned. "Be careful."

He flashed her that grin. It was the one she always saw when she dreamed about him. It was the one he'd given her when he'd popped up in the back of the bug and told her she could have asked for the keys. "Always," he said, and was gone.

She pulled in a deep breath and turned, starting towards the woods at a quick pace. Belle and August both had to nearly jog to catch up with her. The former puppet-turned-man matched her pace. "So, you and Neal?"

"It's not like that."

"Looked kind of like that," he said and she wasn't sure if he sounded wounded by it out not.

"He's Henry's dad, so it's complicated."

"Right, but you don't have feelings for him anymore?"

She shot him a glare. "This isn't really the time, August."

"It never will be and we've got a ways to walk. Trust me, Emma, there's a point."

"It's complicated, but no, I don't think I could ever trust him enough to feel the same way about him. He let me rot in jail for his crime. He abandoned me."

August grimaced. "Listen, there's something I need to talk to you about."

They were on the edge of the woods now, aiming towards the path that led to Gold's cabin. "This really can't wait?"

"It shouldn't," he said softly. "I want to be honest with you, Emma."

She heard it in his tone and she paused, looking at him. There was a sincerity in those blue eyes that she didn't see often and Emma loosed a breath, ready to agree to pause if only for a moment when Belle stepped forward. "Did you hear that?"

Emma hadn't, but that didn't mean that nothing had happened. Belle stepped forward, squinting into the brush and they were greeted by the faint sounds of someone moving through it. They stood at the ready, each tensed as the bushes parted and a sword could be seen through it. Half a moment later, though, David followed the sword and Emma loosed a breath she hadn't realized that she had been holding. "What the hell, guys?" she demanded. "We were supposed to meet at the cabin."

Mary Margaret followed after him, her bow slung across one shoulder and much quieter than her husband. "It was empty."

"Bae must have been right," Belle breathed. "He thought they might have gone down to the docks. He said he'd call when he knew."

"Well let's not keep him waiting," David said.

Emma nodded, exchanging a quick lance with August. Their talk would have to wait.

* * *

Bae's pace was bordering on a jog by the time he'd reached the docks. He was going to kick himself if he got there and found it empty, but he had to make sure. This was where they'd taken Regina in his own timeline, so it was reasonable to think they might take his father there as well. He just hoped Tamara didn't have one of those damn beans to toss his way. Or a bullet. Neither of those would end well for him.

The docks were mostly deserted, but something inside of Baelfire screamed danger. He paused at the top of a ramp, trying to calm his mind. Focus. He needed to focus if he was going to make use of anything that might prove helpful to him. He stood there a moment and reached. He couldn't be sure he was doing it right and he knew his papa might chide him for dabbling in something that he didn't understand without him there, but right then Bae knew his options were limited. He'd crossed the barriers of time to save his family and he'd be damned if he'd let any one of them go now.

"And who might you be?" a voice cooed from behind him and Bae's eyes flew open as he turned.

The woman standing on the ramp just a couple of yards behind him was dressed like a woman of wealth and title from the Enchanted Forest and he knew her face well. It was one he'd hoped to avoid on this particular path. "Cora."

She smiled at him. "I see my reputation precedes me. And who might you be, struggling so hard to reach for magic?"

The colour drained from Bae's face and he took a step back. This wasn't good. He didn't have time for this. He had to get to his papa before something truly terrible happened to him. "I'm nobody," he said tightly after a moment. "Just down here looking for someone. I don't guess you've seen a woman and a guy here, have you? The lady would be pretty. Long dark hair. The guy is balding, not so pretty."

"I'm afraid I haven't, dear," Cora answered and stepped forward. Bae matched it with another step back. "But I am curious how you knew my name."

Damn. He needed to get out of there. As soon as he'd freed his father he was going to demand that he teach him to teleport. It would be so much easier in these situations.

Cora was standing right in front of him now and even though he knew he should be able to step back and continue down the ramp, an invisible wall had flickered into existence behind him. He pressed his back against it, meeting her eyes bravely. "I just need to find who I'm looking for," he said reasonably. "I don't want any trouble."

"And why should I cause you any trouble?" the sorceress asked with false sweetness.

"You won't let me go."

"All I want is you name, dear. That's hardly threatening."

"Funny, I feel a little threatened."

"Cheeky, aren't you? You do look familiar, though I'm certain I've never seen you. What's your name?"

"Neal. Cassidy."

"No, that's not it." She lifted a hand, a glint in her eye as it began to glow.

She reached forward and Bae thought he might have met his own end just for a moment, but something filled him up, rushing through his system until it tingled in his fingers and gathered there. Power, he realized. Regina had said he was powerful after all. Cora's eyes widened just a fraction as that innate power met her own and slammed into her. It picked the sorceress up off her feet and sent her flying several yards back, shattering the invisible wall on his other side and Bae didn't wait to see her hit. Instead he turned and sprinted towards the bottom of the ramp, his senses on fire.

The warning sparked inside of him before Cora's magic hit and he was sent rolling across the docks. He landed hard, feeling the old, splintered wood biting at him the whole way. He struggled to his knees and any defence that might have leapt from him was instantly cut off and he was pinned to the dock, Cora hovering over him with a curious expression. The pressure built around him as well as inside, magic trying to lash out in defence, but cut off by whatever spell she'd cast.

"You're quite talented, though hardly educated in magic," she mused. "You could be very powerful given the chance."

"Good to know," Bae growled. "Let me up."

"Not just yet, dear. Here's your first lesson in magic: you should always respect those more powerful than yourself. I am most certainly more powerful than you, so I'll ask you again and I do believe you'll answer me honestly this time. What is your name?"

The pressure around him increased and Bae choked, finding breathing difficult. He glared and she waved her hand, easily sending him tumbling again. He landed harder than before, if that were possible, and any breath he had left was knocked out of him.

"This really is the last chance I'll give you. I hate to waste such talent, but-"

"Baelfire," Bae choked out and watched her expression change instantly. Gone was the arrogant smile, the certainty of her place in the pecking order. She took a step away from him, the pressure instantly releasing and he forced himself to sit up. Now was no time to show weakness.

"Baelfire?" she breathed. "Rumplestiltskin's son?"

"Yes."

"He finally found you."

"Don't sound so surprised. My papa is a determined man. When he puts his mind to something, _nothing_ gets in his way."

The threat wasn't so subtle that she didn't understand it. She didn't make a move to stop him as he stood, painfully drawing himself up to his full height. He could feel the blood from a gash above his eye dripping down the side of his face and his left knee felt a little funny, but he ignored it as best as he could. This woman didn't know him here. All she knew was that he was the Dark One's son and that he had magic, and by the way she was reacting to that she felt threatened by it.

After a moment, the confident smile returned, even if it looked a bit more put on this time. "That does sound like the Rumple I know. How is he?"

"Well," Bae lied, though he hoped it was truer than he feared.

"I'm sure he is. Let your father know that I'll see him in time, though he hardly needs to worry about little old me."

Bae tried not to snort. "You mean tell him not to get in your way."

"Clever boy. I know nothing comes for free with him. Tell him I'll make it worth his while."

She was letting him go. "I'll make sure he knows," he said evenly.

"Hmm," she hummed to herself, but didn't seem interested in moving any closer to study him. Finally she met his eyes. "I'm sure you will," she said and was gone in a swirl of magic.

Bae let out a long breath of relief. He'd dodged a bullet, even if he wasn't entirely sure how. He couldn't think about that now though. Now he could only think about getting to his papa and getting that dagger away from Tamara. They'd deal with Cora later.

* * *

The only fact that Rumplestiltskin knew about Greg's father was that Regina might have killed him, but even that uncertainty was pulled from him through his connection to the Kris Dagger. Greg had taken possession of it and had finally worked his words so that the Dark One had no way around them. The anger at the words stung through his grip and Rumplestiltskin swayed a bit, his ankle aching terribly.

"You're _lying_," Greg accused, waving the blade dangerously close to Rumple's face.

"I can't," he growled back. "Take a look at what you have in your hand, dearie. My soul is _tied_ to it. You wanted the truth, you got it. That's hardly my fault."

"Greg!" Tamara yelled as the irate man pressed the sharp edge of the blade against Rumplestiltskin's neck. It drew a thin line of blood, the darkness pouring in through the shallow wound and it burned like he'd tossed the dagger back into the flames again. His partner took hold of his wrist though and pulled it away. "We need him, remember?"

He let out a growl of frustration and flung the knife, the steel clanging as it collided with the metal flooring. Greg may not have realized it, but Rumplestiltskin felt the release of control resignate through him. No one possessed the dagger.

"Tell me," he said lowly as his fingers went to the shallow cut on his neck, "are you the one that attacked Belle in the clock tower?"

Greg shot him an exasperated look. "So what? What does it matter now?"

"Oh it matters," Rumplestiltskin purred, reaching out with his magic and the dagger was instantly in his own grasp, "because it means I'll kill you first."

Understanding flashed through his eyes and Tamara called out even as Rumplestiltskin reached forward, his hand buried in her lover's chest and he gripped his heart. "You picked the wrong side, sunshine. You've threatened my grandson and the woman that I love. Did you really think you'd just walk away from that?"

"What are you doing to him?" Tamara managed in a terrified whisper.

A wicked smile crossed thin lips and Rumplestiltskin felt his curse's elation at the turn. "Showing him just how powerful I am," he answered and pulled the man's heart from his chest.

Greg watched with wide eyes. "How?"

"Magic, of course. Something you no longer need to worry yourself over." He tightened his grip and a pained sound escaped in the form of the man's final breath, the heart crumbling in his hands. Rumplestiltskin turned to Tamara, his curse raging through him and demanding revenge. This woman had threatened _everyone_ he loved. He could not let it stand. He _would not_ let it stand. Her death wouldn't be so quick. He had to make sure she felt every bit of pressure applied.

"Papa?"

The voice made him freeze in place and he turned towards it. Bae stood at the top of some stairs, beaten and bloodied, and suddenly Tamara didn't matter as much. "Bae? What happened, son?"

Baelfire paused, his eyes fixated on Greg's lifeless form before they slowly turned back to his papa. "You killed him," he said carefully as he started down the stairs.

"Of course. He was going to hurt Henry and you and Belle."

"Neal," Tamara said, her voice pleading for some kind of help.

Rumplestiltskin turned angry eyes on her as she inched towards the stairs. "And just where do you think you're going, dearie?"

A spell washed over her and she was frozen in place. Bae took the remaining steps quickly. "Papa, don't!"

He stopped and looked at his son. Bae had come closer and was reaching a hand out to physically stop him if necessary, but Rumplestiltskin was too distracted by the blood on his face. Tamara could wait. His son was injured. "What happened, Bae? Are you alright?"

"Huh? Yeah. Mostly."

Rumplestiltskin put his hand to the side of his son's face, thumb gently moving over the source of the blood and he didn't miss the wince because of it. Magic leapt from his fingers and instantly healed the cut.

"Who did this to you?"

Bae looked past him, eyes narrowed at his former fiancé. "Later," he promised, and his eyes flickered back to his father, his voice soft and pleading. "Papa, don't kill her. Please."

"After everything do you still care for her, son?"

Baelfire pursed his lips. "I care about you."

Rumple blinked, not quite understanding and his son reached forward and pulled him into a sudden embrace. "I'm not asking you to be the cowardly spinner you hated so much. I'm not asking that of you, Papa. You were so much more than you ever gave yourself credit for and _that_ has never changed. I'm not saying she doesn't deserve it, just not by your hand. We've got her. She can't hurt Henry anymore. Let it go."

His curse raged against the words and demanded blood and retribution, but his son's arms around him helped to steady the raging storm. If Belle had become his strength, then Bae had always been his anchor. He tightened his own hold and felt a sob well up inside of him as his curse finally relented. "Okay," he whispered.

"Okay," Baelfire agreed and released him slowly. "I love you, Papa."

There was a loud clanging sound from above and shoes hitting the metal flooring. Emma appeared at the top with her gun drawn. She lowered it when she saw the situation was under control and turned a glare on Bae. "You said you'd call."

"I got distracted."

Her eyes turned to the dead body. "I can see that."

"Rumple?" Belle's voice echoed and she appeared behind Emma and ran past her, nearly flying down the stairs in her haste. She flung herself into his arms and buried her face in his shoulder.

"It's alright now," Rumplestiltskin promised.

She pulled back, looking a little embarrassed by her lack of control, but he smiled at her, pulling her hand up to his lips and kissing her knuckles. The action brought a small smile from her as well. "Did they hurt you?"

"No permanent damage done," he promised and wrapped an arm around her.

"We'll take Tamara over to the station. You have your dagger, Gold?" David asked.

"Safely back in my possession."

Charming nodded and Belle took his hand in her own. It had been a long day for everyone. What he wanted right then was a shower and sleep, the knowledge that the people he loved were safe once more firmly acknowledged.

* * *

The bars rattled as the cell door closed and Tamara shot a dirty look in Emma's direction. "So how did he figure it out?"

August shifted, trying to look like he wasn't listening too closely. Emma met her former lover's ex-fiancé's glare. "He's not an idiot. You were pretty obvious."

"Gold killed Greg. Do you think he'll just get away with that?"

Emma offered a guarded smile. "You were going to use him to destroy this town and steal my son. Did you think you'd get away with _that_?"

Tamara paled and took a slow seat on the cot. "What are you going to do with me?"

"That really depends on you," Storybrooke's savior said. "First, you get to spend the night in this cell. Tomorrow, if you're willing to talk, we'll see where it leads."

"You can't just hold me indefinitely. It's illegal."

"So is kidnapping a kid," Emma snapped and stormed out.

"August? Are you going to let her do this?" Tamara asked uneasily from her place.

"You messed with her family and made it personal," the author answered. "You dug your own grave on this one. Just be happy Rumplestiltskin didn't kill you too." He turned, following Emma out into the hallway and found her leaned against the wall, eyes squeezed close and her fingers working at the tension at the bridge of her nose. David and Snow had taken Henry home and the boy's mother seemed like she was in no hurry to return and explain everything. "You okay?"

"She's right. We can't just hold her."

"Rules are different here, Emma. You can't expect a bunch of people from another world to abide by the laws of this one."

"Really? Because that's the line I fed them to keep them from killing Regina when the curse broke and the mob stormed her house." She leaned back, her head thumping softly against the wall. "I don't know what to do, and when I go home Henry's going to want answers that I don't have and a kid shouldn't know that his grandfather killed a man in cold blood-"

"I'm pretty sure Henry knows his grandfather isn't a saint," August offered with a smile smile.

Much to his surprise, Emma returned it. "It's just a big mess."

"Yeah, it is," August answered and leaned his shoulder against the wall so he was facing her. "But you've got this."

"I do?"

"Sure."

"How?"

"You're the savior for a reason, right? You're special."

"No I'm not. My parents are special. Henry's special. I'm just… me. I'm only the savior because Gold wrote my name again and again on a parchment in his cell -"

"Creepy."

"Maybe a little, but that doesn't change the fact that _that's_ why I'm here." She heaved a heavy sigh and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. "What?"

"Belief is not your strong suit." Emma snorted, pulling a laugh out of him. "Hey, you'll figure it out. You're too stubborn not to. It took you a while, but when you decided to believe in magic you went for it. Now you just have to decide to believe in yourself."

"You really think so?"

"I really do."

"You're not lying?"

"Not even a little." He smiled and their eyes met. "You're a special woman, Emma Swan, and not because some imp decided you would be or because your parents were some bigshots in the Enchanted Forest. You're special because you're you and no one else could have done what you've done. You-"

He had had a whole speech that was flowing rather nicely off the tip of his tongue, but she pushed herself off the wall and turned to him, moving in one quick motion to tip up on her toes and she pressed her lips against his. Before it even registered his hands were in her hair and he was kissing her back. Emotions were running high and something in him that he'd spent the last twenty-some-odd years ignoring pretty well resonated in him and he pulled back. He needed to protect her. He needed to do what was right for Emma. "Are you sure about Neal?"

"I told you before: Neal and I are done. This is my choice."

"Well, I certainly wouldn't want to deny you your choice," August murmured and he was kissing her again. He should tell her what Blue said, he knew that he should, but the words were lost between the kisses and desire. He didn't want to say anything to ruin this, and in the grand scheme of his life, he very rarely did what he didn't want to do.

* * *

TBC

Notes: This is the moment where I swear never to move again, even though I know it'll happen. I'm not even entirely done. It's just been crazy. All that to say, sorry for the lack of update yesterday and for the lack of update tomorrow. It's going to be a two-update sort of week, so I'm updating today. I am leaving you with a chapter that I had a lot of fun with for the different dynamics though. I told you things would pick up once Emma showed up :D

Next time - Chapter Thirteen: Answers and Questions, in which Bae receives some answers about his magic, Regina confronts Rumple about his place in having brought Henry to Storybrooke, and Emma and August try to figure out just who Tamara thought she was working for.

The next update should be Monday, if all goes well. By then I should have handed my keys in for my old apartment and be done with this crazy fiasco for a while at least.


	14. Answers and Questions

**Chapter Thirteen: Answers and Questions**

Dark eyes fixated in the swirling magic that moved through the tubes and emptied out into the beaker on the other end. The liquid that had been bubbling in the beaker sparked as the contents hit, turning it from a blue, to dark, and then back to a lighter shade than had been there before. Bae risked a glance up to find his father was watching the transition with his keen gaze focused. He hardly looked like he'd been through his own personal hell the day before and his son wondered if he always bounced back this quickly. In Bae's own time, he'd seen his father dying of poison one moment and back on his feet the next. He knew the cause, of course, and magic truly was a strange thing.

"Are you ready to tell me?"

Bae startled. His papa had never lifted his gaze from the experiment that was meant to give him a little more clarity as to how and why he'd gained sensitivity to magic so quickly. "About what?" he asked tentatively, not sure what he was referring to. Had he seen something in the experiment to implicate him in something he hadn't even meant to be a part of?

"About who attacked you yesterday."

Oh. That. He'd almost forgotten in everything that had followed. He and Belle had helped Rumplestiltskin back to his home and he'd spoken only a handful of words between a shower and falling into bed. The dreaded conversation about Cora had been lost to the aftermath of Tamara, but he should have known better than to think his papa had forgotten.

"Yeah. That," he said slowly and that finally brought Rumplestiltskin's gaze up to meet his own, even as the test in the beaker flashed briefly green before simmering back down to boil. "We were on our way to the cabin, since that's where we thought you were, but in my time Tamara and Greg had kidnapped Regina and had taken her to the cannery. It was just a hunch, so I went alone." He saw the look that his father was giving him and in hindsight it had been foolish. "Anyway, I made it to the docks and ran across Cora."

Rumplestiltskin went pale, his hands stilling mid-action and he turned wide brown eyes to his son. "Are you certain?"

"I met her pretty quickly in my own time, but she's a difficult woman to forget."

"Indeed," his papa breathed and turned himself back to the previous task at hand as he spoke, his voice carefully controlled. "She hurt you."

Bae snorted. "She sent me rolling a couple of times. I'm good. As soon as she found out who I was she stopped."

Rumplestiltskin hummed softly to himself and lifted a beaker, swirling the liquid inside and looking at it curiously. "You're very lucky she let you get that far."

"I may have pushed her back with magic," Bae answered in a rushed voice, throwing his hands up in mock defence when eyes the same colour as his own met his gaze. "By accident, Papa. I didn't do it on purpose."

"That doesn't make it better, Bae," Rumplestiltskin murmured. "Let me see your hand."

Bae obeyed immediately and his papa pricked his finger with a needle. "Ow! What the hell, Pop? Warning?"

He didn't answer as he tapped the needle against the beaker, a couple drops of Bae's blood slipping into it. His son watched him work carefully, the magic leaping upward from the glass container and sparking. Rumplestiltskin's eyes never left it, and he watched as it swirled and fizzled. His expression was carefully blank, but if Bae looked closely enough he could see the way his muscles were pulled taught in effort to keep it that way. "You're mad at me, aren't you?" he breathed at last.

"What? Of course not," Rumplestiltskin said quickly.

"Papa..." Bae said softly and he watched the careful mask crack.

Emotions played just beneath it, as if he were weighing all of his options. Finally he sighed and looked directly at his son. "I'm not angry at you, Bae. I'm frightened. This... I've never seen this before, Bae, and if you're losing control of it already-"

"I'm not losing control of it."

"You just said that you reacted by accident. That means you're losing control, son, and that can be dangerous."

Bae bit off his argument. There was true worry in his papa's eyes. If Rumplestiltskin was an expert on anything it was magic. If he said it was dangerous then it was. "Okay. So what do we do about it? Is that telling you anything?" He motioned to the still-reacting liquid.

"Yes it is. One of my theories looks to be right. You spent quite a bit of time in Neverland, yes?"

"Yeah. Somewhere between two and three hundred years."

Rumplestiltskin's voice was tight as he spoke of his estranged father's playground. "It looks like your time there clung to you even after you left. The magic latched onto you, but remained dormant, likely because you returned to the Land Without Magic."

"But it didn't show when I showed up in Storybrooke in my timeline. Why now?"

"Magic is different here, Bae. After it had remained dormant in your system it would have needed a kick start like we simply do not have here. Now, my castle back home is an entirely different matter. Using that spell book jolted the magic into an active form in your system. I'd thought, perhaps, it was simply the remnants if the spell, but it's in your blood, son. It's part if you now."

"So what do we do about it?"

Rumplestiltskin's lips thinned out and he looked away. Bae reached out and put a hand against his arm, pulling his attention back around. "Papa, what do we do?"

"Suppressing magic such as this is more dangerous than leaving it untrained."

"Okay, so you can train it right? You can teach me?"

His papa looked at him, surprise echoing in his gaze. "You understand what you're asking, don't you, Bae?"

He did, didn't he? Bae couldn't help but smile as he tightened his grip on his papa's arm. "Yeah. I do. Let's just bypass some of the really dark stuff huh? I don't think I'm comfortable ripping anyone's heart out."

Much to his pleasant surprise, his father chuckled. "No, we might should stay away from all that."

The bell jingled, announcing someone's entrance in the front of the shop and Rumplestiltskin stood. "I know I locked that door..."

Bae stood with him and followed him out to the shop. Henry was already halfway back to them and was grinning ear to ear. "That's so cool! Did you know that it'll unlock just by touching the doorknob? Is that some sort of magic?"

"Blood magic, yes," Rumplestiltskin answers, but his eyes were focused on Regina who had accompanied her adopted son into the shop.

"That's so awesome! I guess I never tried it come on before when it was locked," Henry said and the grin hadn't faded.

"Henry, sweetie, why don't you have a chat with Baelfire? Your...grandfather and I need to have a talk."

Bae shot his papa a look and he shrugged. "You do like pawning the boy off when you want to have a chat, don't you?"

"You want to grab lunch at Granny's?" Henry asked, and how could a dad say no to that bright smile?

"Sure, buddy. Pop, you need help putting anything away before I-"

"No, I'll take care of it. Enjoy your time."

Bae nodded, a smile of his own taking over as he wrapped an arm around his son's shoulders and they started out. His papa could handle Regina, and when he got back he'd get the full story on Cora. Until then, he could revel in the fact that he could take his son out to lunch. He was willing to pay a steep price as long as it resulted in moments like this.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had known this was coming since the news of Henry's birth father became relatively common knowledge. Regina trusted no one fully - and had good reason not to - and she likely thought he'd planned it all out from the very beginning. He remembered the day she had come barging into his shop, baby Henry in his carrier and dark circles under her eyes. Rumple hadn't known what she was talking about at the time - his memories had still been under wraps and Mr Gold had been more than a little confused by the Evil Queen's ramblings - but looking back on it she'd known something wasn't right. She'd just been wrong in the details of how he'd orchestrated the shattering of his own curse.

"You know why I'm here," Regina said tightly.

"I suppose I do," the Dark One sighed, shuffling back towards his office and his former student followed. He might have known it was coming, but that didn't mean he had to be happy dealing with it. The day before had been less than pleasant for him and he still felt a bit worn from it all, even if he wouldn't admit it for anything. "To answer the looming question: no. I was not aware of Henry's heritage, though now it's a bit hard to miss, don't you think? He has my eyes."

Regina snorted. "You expect me to believe that?"

"Believe what you will, dear. It's the truth."

"You're the one who found him. Emma - the savior that _you_ set up - and Baelfire - _your_ son - have a child and that's the boy that you happen to find for me."

"Are you saying you'd rather not have him?"

She looked like she might be ready to lash out at him for that one, but he knew the answer. Sometimes to accept an obvious point Regina needed a good shove. Sometimes off the side of a cliff, but he hoped it wouldn't go that far this time. "Of course not," she growled. "I wouldn't give Henry up for _anything_."

A small smile perked his lips as he began to clean up the equipment he and Bae had been using. "I know."

She moved around to the other side of the work table and leaned in, her eyes pleading and strangely open. "Rumple, please be honest with me. Just this once. Did you plan this? Is Henry just another pawn in your plan?" _Like me. _The words weren't spoken, but they came through clearly enough.

Rumplestiltskin paused, his hands stilling and now he knew why she was so put out. The woman fighting to make sure her son was safe hardly reminded him of the Evil Queen he'd helped to shape her into. She reminded him more of the kind-hearted and desperate young woman he'd first met. Though the strength was there. It always had been, and the Evil Queen had done well to drag it to the surface. "Sometimes fate has a sense of humour, Regina. I didn't plan this though. It was just as much of a surprise to me as it was to you." He paused, watching her carefully. "I'm not going to harm Henry. On that you have my word."

It took her a moment, but finally she seemed to relax, if only a little.

Rumplestiltskin stole a glance as he magicked the glass clean. "And Bae will not steal him away from you. He understands this is a delicate set up."

He watched her relax just a little more and she picked up one of the newly clean beakers to examine it. Rumplestiltskin had never felt overly guilty for his part in turning Revina into what she was. After all, everyone had a choice and he'd never _forced_ her to do anything. He wasn't sure if his curse had kept him from it in the Enchanted Forest or if it was the combination of having both Bae and Belle in his life, but in that moment he felt a pang of guilt over it all. He wouldn't undo it even if he could, not with his son in his life once more, but a strange sensation nudged at him that he owed her something more than he'd paid her for it. He pulled in a deep breath, settling on the stool and looking at her. Honesty had never been the best colour in him, but in that moment he knew that he really should try. This was his grandson's adopted mother, after all, and Henry loved her.

"Do you know why I chose you to cast the curse?"

She blinked, a little startled by the question. "I was there?"

Rumplestiltskin chuckled. "Well, dearie, if that's all it took, I'd have had a few other easier candidates available. Your sister the top of that list."

He watched her expression change from confusion into shock. "My..._what_?"

He knew Cora hadn't told her, and if the would-be queen was going to cause trouble, he'd rather have Regina in their side. "Sister. Your sister. Oh, Cora didn't tell you?"

"You know she didn't, you little imp," she growled and looked a bit ill.

"Her first born. Zelena is an incredibly powerful sorceress. At the time that I met her, she was likely more powerful than you were."

"I really hope there's a point to this, Gold."

He let a thin smile tug at his lips. "My point, Regina, is that there were others more powerful than you, but you had a strength to get through anything. It's a trait that few possess quite as you do. No one will ever be able to _take_ Henry from you. You may lose him, but that will be on you."

"Do you think people like us can change?"

"Perhaps. It is amazing what our children can bring about in us, isn't it?"

She watched him and he felt her smile rather than saw it, but he heard the short laugh. "Who are you and what have you done with Rumplestiltskin?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, dearie," the Dark One answered, a wicked grin crossing his lips.

Regina snorted. "Not that you'd ever fess up to this conversation anyway," she murmured. "Thank you, Rumple. After everything-"

"Let's just call it even, shall we? We are family now after all."

"Frightening."

"Isn't it? Now if that's all..."

She nodded and Rumplestiltskin watched her walk out. He'd nearly killed her more times than she'd managed to come close to killing him, but it would seem that a new page was turning in their book. Though as a flash of the future hit him, staggering him against his work table in the abruptness of it, he knew they had a long way to go.

* * *

She'd made a lot of mistakes in her life and most of them had been bred out of hasty decisions. Emma still hadn't decided for sure that the kiss that she and August had shared the night before was a mistake, but she certainly wasn't sure that she had done the right thing either. She'd kissed him because she wanted to, because she'd needed… something, though what that something was she wasn't certain. She rarely was when something like this happened. Part of her had wanted to sit down and talk to Mary Margaret like they would have done when they had just been roommates, just friends, not the strange sort of mother-daughter-but-the-same-age awkwardness that they had now. She didn't know what she would have said, but anything would have been better than the nagging feeling that August was the convenient choice. It didn't hurt that he had research skills that helped with sorting through Tamara and her partner's files.

"When you asked if I wanted to have lunch, this is not what I expected," August grumbled as he leaned back in his chair, balanced on the back legs.

"You offered to help. I needed help," Emma answered with a shrug as she motioned to the files scattered across her desk. "Lunch is a bonus."

"That I had to pick up," the author teased and she rolled her eyes. Any good humour she might have had backlogged for the day had been quickly spent. David was still going through the Uhaul that Greg had brought in while Mary Margaret and Ruby were doing a final check over the room Tamara had been staying in. The files Emma had the joy of sorting through were certainly damning to the woman who sat on the cot in the little cell just beyond her closed office door, but damning evidence only helped if Emma understood what it all meant. It might all point back to Tamara and her dead partner, but the sheriff couldn't quite decide if they were crazy loners or part of something _much_ bigger. If it was the second option, Storybrooke could be in for quite a bit of trouble.

"So have you figured out what this Home Office is?" August asked as he pulled one of the files from the top.

"No clue."

"And she won't talk?"

"Not a word."

"Have you brought Neal in?

Emma looked at him like he was crazy. "Why would I do that?"

"Well, he _was_ engaged to her. Maybe he can get something from her we can't."

Emma leaned forward against her desk, hazel eyes narrowed. "Do you believe him?"

August blinked. "Who on what?"

"Neal. His whole crazy time travel thing. Do you believe him?"

"I haven't heard the whole story on that one."

"Seriously? I thought you two were buddies or something."

August shot her a look that said he did _not_ want to be a part of this conversation. "We have...kind of a weird friendship."

"Well that fits in well here." She watched as he flipped through the pages, keen blue eyes skimming the words. She was lucky he'd lasted this long, she supposed. August liked to get up and move, and it would seem unless he had a typewriter in front of him, he didn't like to sit still long. He'd been there for her though, scouring through the increasingly endless pages for the last couple of hours with only the occasional complaint. He made a face then, like something interesting had caught his eye, and he reached across the desk for another file he'd tossed aside just a few moments before.

"These two are both from their files?"

"Yes…?" Emma said slowly, not sure what he'd picked up on.

"And this one here?"

"Still yes. All of these are from the Uhaul David's been going through. What do you see?"

"Look at these." He pulled from another stack they'd gone through maybe half an hour before. "And here. These are recent, right? They talk about a boy that will help them destroy magic, what he looks like, yadda yadda yadda."

"Henry," Emma seethed.

"I guess so. But look here. These are the ones David dropped off a few minutes ago. They're dated back over a year."

"So what?"

"So, someone else entirely different wrote these."

Emma pursed her lips together. "That doesn't prove anything, August."

"No, it does. Look. These are correspondences from before Tamara and Neal got together. You can tell they're similar, even if it might be one or two people writing it. Fast forward to after Neal and Tamara met." He made a grab for another file after looking over the dates on them for a second and Emma couldn't even imagine how he was pulling all of the information together suddenly. It was like one string had been tugged on and the blanket was unraveling for him. "Here, not only is it a different writer, but there's an underlying difference in what they're wanting from their operatives. It's like they were being inched towards Storybrooke."

"Like the people on the other end already knew it existed."

"Exactly."

"Where the hell did that come from?"

"Research. Lots and lots of research for my books. When it comes together, it _all_ comes together."

"Good job. Maybe I should make you deputy or something."

"Maybe you should just come get a real meal with me after you get done grilling Tamara."

"The fate of Storybrooke hangs in the balance and you want to go get a drink."

"Well, I said _meal_, but if you're going to be so dramatic about it…"

Emma rolled her eyes and stood, collecting all the paperwork together. "I'll let you know after I get done grilling Tamara."

* * *

There was never a dull moment when your True Love was Rumplestiltskin. Belle was finally coming down off of the stress of the day before and this day was quickly coming to an end. She'd spent the night at Rumple's home - something she hadn't allowed herself to do since they'd started trying to build a relationship rather than just fall headlong into it - but had barely gotten any sleep as she had consistently slipped out of bed to pad her way down the hall and peek into his room. Bae had pointed out the next morning that she would have saved a lot of time and effort if she'd simply gone and slept _in_ the room with him. He had a point, even if she hadn't admitted it openly.

As far as she had seen, even in Storybrooke Rumple went to bed late and woke early. While his sleeping habits were much improved from what they'd been back home, the fact that the sun had been up in the sky before he'd risen was proof that he wasn't as solidly on his feet as he would have liked everyone to believe, even if he was telling her that she was worrying too much over him. He and Bae had left for the shop just after breakfast and she'd forced herself to head over to the library to see how much more she could get put together.

Greg and Tamara hadn't done any real damage to the library when they'd broken in, with the exception of the back door being forced open, and August had offered to come by and fix that. He'd done so quickly that morning, letting it slip that he was having lunch with Emma, and Belle had just smiled. She had nothing against August, of course, but she'd seen how Bae looked at the woman he'd crossed time for. While in the end everyone's happiness was important, she couldn't help but to side just a little with Baelfire. She was biased. She could admit that.

Belle was halfway to the back of the library when she heard the sharp tapping on the front door. She'd half expected Rumple to drop by at some point today - he was just as worried over her after the whole incident as she was over him - so when she reached the front door she didn't bother looking around the coverings on the windows. She had the door halfway open when she saw a face that looked somewhat familiar, but her mind refused to place him immediately. He was tall, dressed in leathers that didn't belong in this world, and he flashed her a smile that likely made most women go weak at the knees. "I'm sorry, but we're not open yet."

"I am well aware," he drawled, pushing his way into the library. "I'm not here for the books, love."

It clicked then and the memories came rushing back. "You're the one that broke into my cell at Regina's castle. You wanted to kill Rumple."

The smile broadened, but it was hardly charming now. "Still do," he said as he lurched forward.

"You have to be joking," Belle half grumbled. She was going to have to break down and allow Rumple cast some sort of protection spell over the library. This was getting ridiculous. "You're too late," she snapped as she moved a rolling cart of books into his path. "Rumple's already moved his dagger. You won't find it here."

"I suppose I'll just settle for you then," the pirate growled and she shoved the cart hard, sending it and him tumbling as she took off for the elevator.

The doors slid sluggishly closed behind her and Belle fumbled for her cell phone, hitting redial even as she heard him crashing against the other side. The line crackled and fuzzed in her ear, ringing several times before a voice she knew well answered. "Hey, Belle."

"Rumple, there's a pirate in the library. He's-" the door rattled again and Belle could hear the sound of gears turning. He was getting it open.

"Belle? You're breaking up," Rumple answered, or at least that's what she thought he said. It crackled halfway through before the call dropped and the door slid open, ready to take the hand off of the person doing the forcing.

A hook wedged it open though, and the pirate pried it open the rest of the way, his eyes fixated on her as he stepped forward, swiping the useless phone out of her hands and backing her against the wall of the elevator. "What do you want from me?" she demanded, forcing her voice to remain steady.

"From you? Nothing. I just want the Dark One to suffer as I did. I'm afraid you just had the misfortune of catching his fancy."

One gloved hand wrapped around her thin throat and Belle struggled, her voice barely baking it past her constricted airway as her fingers pulled at his. "Rumple...stiltskin..."

"'Fraid that won't work here, love. Didn't you know? This is the Land Without Magic. The demon can't save you here."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I feel like I should take a moment after the reviews on last chapter to promise that I'm a very strong SwanFire shipper. True Love just has to be worked for, and Emma gets a little stubborn sometimes. Okay... all the time. Emma gets a little stubborn all the time :P

Next time - Chapter Fourteen:Since of the Past, where Rumple and Hook face off and Belle learns to the story about her love's late wife.


	15. Sins of the Past

**Chapter Fourteen: Sins of the Past**

The pull of his name varied depending on the situation and the speaker. The alert that rushed through his senses differed if it was said in passing, someone mentioning his name in conversation versus a call. If his name were called by someone he cared about, the pull could be staggering.

Belle's voice was filled with desperation and after the previous day's events it chilled Rumplestiltskin to the core. He didn't bother with the short walk between his shop and the library, but merely thought it and his magic took him there in a swirl of red smoke. As he landed, rage built to the boiling point.

Hook. He hadn't seen or thought about the pirate in many years, but none of his hatred for the man that had stolen his wife away subsided when he saw the way his remaining hand was wrapped around Belle's thin neck and he was choking the life out of her. His magic leapt out, ripping and biting at the pirate that hadn't even had time to realize he was there. Hook was lifted off his feet and tossed across the stretch of the room as if he'd been a child's rag doll. He slammed fully into a bookcase and sagged down, dazed by the blow.

Rumplestiltskin was instantly by Belle's side, his skilled hands checking her throat and she looked up from where she had half slid down the wall upon the release. "Rumple?" she croaked softly. "He came in and he... He's trying to kill you."

"He has been for some time now and hasn't succeeded yet." He kissed her head. "Nor shall he today."

The Dark One stood, stepping out of the elevator and power built around him, ready at his command should he call on it. Hook was on his feet again as well, though a bit bent over, and he winced as he forced his shoulders to square up. "Still hiding behind your magic, crocodile?"

"I'm hardly hiding, pirate. Nor was I hiding when you attacked Belle. Attacking those less likely to fight back does seem to be a running theme with you over the years."

Hook snarled as he lunged forward, swiping out with his sword and Rumplestiltskin compensated for his weak ankle by teleporting a short distance, just out of the way. His younger foe caught himself though, moving quickly as he came back around for a blow and the Dark One was gone again, this time slamming Hook into the ground with a burst of power.

The pirate rolled, chuckling as he sat up. "You know, you look different in this world. More like the coward I met so long ago. Limp and all." A slow smile spread, splitting his lip and blood gathered there.

"And yet, you still can't kill me ," Rumplestiltskin answered evenly.

"I was right. Call it what you will, but you _are_ hiding behind your magic. You won't face me like a man. You wouldn't when I came to port in your little excuse for a village and you wouldn't when you _murdered_ my love in cold blood!"

Hook lunged forward, but Rumple didn't move. He heard Belle cry out and the anger took hold of him as he sidestepped in the last moment, slamming his cane hard into the pirate's back. The younger man grunted as he landed hard and Rumplestiltskin hit him again. "Am I hiding now?" he demanded, his voice coming out as a deadly growl. Hated filled him and his curse, so crushed down the day before, demanded retribution. Hook was the perfect target for it.

"Just have to prove you're not a coward, don't you?"

Rumplestiltskin stepped towards him, ready to lay into him in full this time, but Hook kicked out, his boot colliding with the elder man's bad ankle and he dropped instantly, his leg refusing to hold his weight after the blow. He cringed, refusing to let the cry that was clawing its way up his throat make it past his lips. He was _not_ the weak and helpless spinner any longer.

"I'd heard you had a rough go of it, crocodile, but I didn't think it'd be quite this easy," Hook gloated as he stood over, sword posed to strike.

Rumplestiltskin pulled his magic to himself for defence, but he never got a chance as one of the large bookshelves came crashing down and he barely scurried out of the way before he too was taken out by it. Belle was at his arm in a moment, helping to pull him to his feet.

Hook coughed out a laugh from beneath the shelving, books sliding around as he tried to shift his weight beneath them. "I'd be careful if I were you, lass. You might think he cares, but so did Milah once. It cost her her life."

Anger flooded through him again and he turned, magic slamming into the pirate, sending the bookshelf sliding with him.

"Rumple!" Belle cried out, grabbing his hand. "Rumple, please. This is what he wants. He wants to drive everything good from you. Let's go."

"Go ahead and finish it," Hook growled from his place. "Kill me like you did Milah so I can see her again."

"Rumple, what would Bae say if he were here?" Belle whispered frantically and he turned. She looked up at him with those clear blue eyes and he thought his tattered heart might break in that moment. Hook deserved to die after everything, but she and Bae deserved the very best he could do for them. Even if _he_ knew he wasn't any better, he could at least pretend to be. For them.

It almost hurt, but he put aside the demanding, dark voice that was his curse and he pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before loosing a shaky breath and turned a hard glare at the pinned pirate. "I never want to see your face again. Sail your ship off the edge of the world for all I care. Just get out."

Belle squeezed his fingers and pulled him towards the door.

* * *

The sun was dipping down on the horizon as they exited the library, Belle pulling Rumplestiltskin nearly off his feet in her haste. She didn't stop until he did actually stumble, his ankle giving way under him even with the cane to help brace him. She turned, biting her lip. She'd almost forgotten amongst all of the raging questions burning in her mind about the blow he'd taken to it. Now she saw him grimace, sinking to the pavement on the open street to explore the damage with long, skilled fingers. "Are you alright?" she asked at last.

"Well enough," he answered tightly as he stood again, leaning heavily on his cane. He had only taken one or two steps when she reached out to him, taking some of his weight.

"What _was_ all that, Rumple?"

"It was nothing."

Belle took a steadying breath. "Rumple," she said carefully, trying to hold onto the frustration and keep it from spilling over. When he wouldn't look at her she stopped - forcing him to as well with the way he was leaned against her - and she moved so that she was looking in directly in the eyes. "I need you to trust me, Rumple. I need you to have faith that, no matter how bad it is, I'll stand by you."

"Will you?" he snapped, though she didn't miss the pain beneath the cutting edges. He hid beneath it, even from her, and it hurt even worse knowing that.

"Yes," she stressed, gripping either arm in her small hands. "Rumple, I love you. Please trust that."

His lips thinned out in a grimace and she could see the battle waging inside of him behind those dark brown eyes. Finally, he loosed a breath and reached a hand up to her face, stroking her cheek as he spoke slowly and quietly. "Milah that he spoke of was my wife."

"Baelfire's mother?"

"Yes. She… Hook took her. She left us and Hook took her, so I took his hand."

That wasn't all and she knew it. She could see the way he paused, clever mind weighing and trying to predict the outcome of words and phrases and the effect that they'd have on her. She wished, more times than not, that he'd simply speak from the heart. She'd seen it a few times and she never felt closer to him than when he did, but now he was so very afraid. Of what she didn't know. "Okay, but what happened to her?"

"She died, that's all that really matters."

"Did Hook kill her?" Rumple rarely out-and-out lied to her and she reached up to take his hand in her own, tipping up on her toes and pressing a kiss to his lips, soft and lingering. Hook had said trusting in Rumple had cost her her life, but Belle hadn't been afraid of him in a long, long time. "Trust me," she breathed out as she broke the kiss.

His eyes were tortured when she pulled back. She'd rarely seen him show any feelings of guilt over… well, most anything, to be honest. If he did something he usually had reasons for it, even if they were terrible and dark, and to Rumplestiltskin that justified the action, but now she saw something akin to regret there. "I killed her," he confessed softly and Belle felt her breath catch.

"You… what?"

He didn't say it a second time, but pulled away from her and started back towards the shop. Belle stood frozen for a moment, eyes fixated on where he'd just been, before she forced herself to turn. She'd promised him. She'd promised him that he could tell her _anything_, and she couldn't go back on that now. Strangely enough there was no fear there as she followed him, only pain.

The bell rang as he opened the door and she followed him through just a moment later. "Rumple…"

"Hey, Papa, where've you been?" Bae's voice filtered through from the back. Rumple's son appeared, leaning through the curtain and Henry echoed the movement below him. "You weren't answering your phone."

"He had to come rescue me," Belle cut in even as her love moved past his son and grandson into the back. Bae shot her a look and she frowned. "I'm afraid the situation touched on a rather unpleasant subject."

Bae nodded and Belle was sure he understood even more than she did, though he hadn't been there. "Henry, why don't you go cheer your grandpa up? I'm going to chat with Belle for a few minutes."

"He didn't really look like he wanted to be cheered up," Henry murmured, casting a wary look back to the office.

His dad shot him a look of feigned shock. "Are you saying you're not up to the task?"

That pulled a smile out of his son. "Totally."

Belle watched the enthusiastic boy turn to chase after his grandfather and Baelfire came closer, a rather content smile on his face despite the tense air that could be felt through the shop. With what Rumple had told her about their parting, Belle had hardly believed this sort of a reunion would be possible. From everything he'd told her she expected that when he found Baelfire he would be hurt and would likely take quite a bit of convincing that his father did, in fact, love him more than life itself. Something in Bae's own time must have shown him that, she decided, because the man that stood before her seemed to already know. He seemed solid in that belief.

"So what rock did Papa drop on you today?" he asked, a small smile tilting only one side of his mouth.

"I probably shouldn't speak to you about it. It really isn't fair and I don't know what all you know about it…"

"What's the topic?"

Belle pursed her lips together. "Your mother," she said after a moment and watched the smile fade a little.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I got the whole story on that. Pop didn't actually give it to me. I got it from the pirate that was completely cool with whisking her away and then handing me over to Pan and his gang."

"Hook?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"He's the one that just attacked me in the library! He was trying to lure you father in."

"Well, if there's one sure-fire way to get Papa to respond, it's to attack you." He shrugged, leaning back against a display case. "Might sign the person's death warrant, but it'll get Papa's attention. What about my mom?"

Belle couldn't possibly be sure if Bae knew all the details. If she just started in and found out halfway through that he didn't, she'd never be able to forgive herself. This was not her place to make sure that he knew how his mother died, it was Rumple's, and that could only come when he was ready. "How she died," she answered noncommittally after a moment.

"Yeah," Bae breathed out, glancing back towards the office. "Glad I sent Henry away for this topic. The kid's really taking a shine to Papa now that he knows he's his grandfather and well… I'm hoping that'll help remind him of who he wants to be, not just who he's been."

A small laugh left Belle. "He's more than his curse makes him."

"Without a doubt, but I think that's more of a recent change. You should have seen him right after he took it on. You wouldn't even have recognized him. I didn't, and I'm his son." Bae pulled in a deep breath, closing his eyes as he spoke. "I think the power… overwhelmed him at first. Even when he showed up on my doorstep in New York, he was so different than when he let me go. I just didn't want to see it. Now, I think he's even better than he was then. I think you have a lot to do with that."

Belle felt heat rush to her face. "But I haven't done anything."

"Sure you have. You're there for him. You love him. Papa just needs to be reminded of that sometimes." Dark eyes turned to meet her own blue. "I'm not saying that what happened with my mom is excusable, but I know enough about her to know how she pushed him. He didn't have it in him to fight back when I was a kid. _Everyone_ put him down, so he probably didn't think a lot of his wife doing it too. He just… sort of accepted it. It couldn't have been long after I left that it all happened, because it was less than a year later that I met Hook. My best guess is that she thought she could push him around like she did when they were married and she said just the wrong thing."

He knew. He had to know with the way he was speaking about it. "Do you think he regrets it?"

"Papa doesn't regret much, but give him time. He'll talk to you about it. You've just got to give him time."

"He's not that man anymore," Belle said, and she knew she sounded like she was trying to convince herself.

"No," Bae agreed. "He's not. Thanks to you."

"And you," she answered with a smile.

"Maybe a little bit of both. What do you say we stick around for him?"

She found herself laughing softly and nodded. "I won't give up on him. Ever. True Love is worth fighting for."

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had always been fond of Henry, though now it made more sense as to why. It was funny, now that he knew that the boy was Bae's son, how he saw mannerisms and other traits that reminded him of Baelfire around the same age. Even as he sat on a spare stool in the back office, prattling on about this and that and trying to take his grandfather's mind off of the looming followup conversation with Belle that was bound to happen, Rumple saw the likeness in the way his bright smile reached his eyes and his voice sped up as he continued to grow more and more excited about his topic.

"She won't stay mad."

Rumplestiltskin startled out of his thoughts as he realized the statement was made directly to him, his grandson's brown eyes fixated on him as he leaned forward, balanced in the stool. "I'm sorry?"

"Whatever you told Belle that you're worried about. She won't stay mad. She loves you."

"What makes you think I'm worried?"

Henry rolled his eyes as if he were more than a little offended by the question. "It's kind of written all over your face."

Rumplestiltskin frowned. "Is it now?"

"Yep, but you shouldn't worry. True Love is the strongest magic of all, right? Belle's your True Love, so you should trust her to love you as much as you love her."

The shop owner watched the serious expression that had settled onto his grandson's face. "You're right, Henry, but trust doesn't come very easy with me."

"Why not?"

Rumple reached across the table, fingers latching onto a little, antique piano that once had been a music box before the gears had worn out and it had been shuffled around the wrong way one too many times. It was falling apart and he'd been reminding himself to work on it, but with Bae's arrival and everything that had followed, he'd barely gotten a breath. Now he pulled it close, inspecting it so that he didn't have to meet his grandson's piercing gaze as he spoke quietly. "Life lessons learned the hard way, I fear."

"There's not much in my book about you before you became the Dark One. Did you love anyone before Belle? Did you love my dad's mom?"

Rumplestiltskin barely contained the cringe, as he focused on his task. "I thought I did. Once."

"She didn't love you?"

He finally looked at the boy then. If he had to think about Milah, it was easier to hate her than remember the days he'd loved her. She'd certainly had fewer of those days than he, if any at all. It was easier to hate than hurt, but Henry's sincerity and innocence managed to temper that a little so that at least some of the bitterness was left out of the words. "No. She did not."

"Well, Belle does. She nearly broke your curse, right?"

He turned back to the task in his hands. It must have been nice to be so optimistically naive. "Yes, she did."

"Well," his grandson said as he hopped off the stool, "guess she'll just have to convince you. Good luck."

Rumplestiltskin looked up again, but his eyes caught a pair of clear blue ones before the question could roll of his tongue. Their owner stood in the doorway, offering Henry a smile as he rushed past. Belle turned back to look at him and Rumple couldn't meet her eyes. She was perfect in every way imaginable. Kind, generous, pure, and far too forgiving for someone like him. He didn't deserve her. He loved her, but he didn't deserve her.

Her heels tapped against the wooden floor as she crossed the space. His brave Belle never shrank back, never coward away from the issue at hand like he did. His eyes were fixated again on the little music box and he felt her hand come to rest against his cheek, pulling him gently so he looked at her. She didn't say anything as her lips pressed against his and he felt the magic move between them in True Love's kiss. Proof, he realized, in one of the few ways he could truly accept.

"I love you," she whispered as they parted. "I don't always understand you, or approve of what you do or have done, but I love you. All of you. Even the darkest corners of your soul."

He felt his breath catch at the confession. "Belle, I-"

"I know you're not that man anymore, Rumple. You're better than you were, and with each good decision you're getting a little better."

"I'll never be what you need... Or what you deserve."

"You're the man I love. That's more than enough, Rumplestiltskin."

"I don't deserve you," he whispered and she pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"It's not about deserving. It's about love." She pulled back, meeting his eyes. "When you're ready, I'd like to hear the full story from you about Milah. I know it may not be today or even next week, but when you're ready, will you trust me enough to tell me?"

"Yes," he promised quickly, not giving himself time to overthink it. "When I can."

"That's all I ask. Now, I'm going to Granny's to pick up dinner. Burgers?"

"Don't let her charge you any extra for the pickles," Rumplestiltskin murmured and Belle laughed.

"It's just you she charges extra for," she teased and kissed his cheek.

"Be careful."

"I will. I think you appropriately frightened him away."

He gave her a tight smile and watched as she left. "Come on in, Henry," he called and his grandson peeked sheepishly around the curtain. Rumplestiltskin's smile grew a little more real. "You too, Bae."

Baelfire chuckled as he followed his son back into the office. "I'm going to go with her, just to make sure. Hook's persistent."

"You know him?"

"Neverland," Bae said by way of explanation and ducked out, following Belle and leaving Rumplestiltskin and Henry alone in the office.

"Told ya," his grandson said as soon as the front door closed.

Rumple chuckled. "And I thought you might have simply bypassed too much from your other grandparents personalities. Pity," he said teasingly.

Henry grinned. "I think I'm a pretty good mix. We've got a crazy family, huh?"

"Very," his grandfather agreed and glanced towards the curtain with building irritation as the bell announced a customer.

"Didn't you switch it to closed?"

"Yes, though that rarely seems to matter. I'll be right back."

Rumplestiltskin limped his way to the front, his ankle aching worse than before now that he'd been sitting. He should ice it, he thought. Perhaps Belle could bring some back from Granny's.

He looked around, finding the shop empty. He stepped further in, trying to crush the uneasy feeling. He was being paranoid. Belle was right in the fact that he'd frightened Hook away. Likely far, far away.

A small sound to his left caught his attention and he barely saw his attacker before Hook was on top of him. Magic leapt to his fingertips, but instantly vanished, replaced by a numbness that spread through him. He blinked, his mind trying to wrap around the fact that Hook had ahold of the front of his lapels and was simply standing there, as if he'd cast some sort of holding spell on the Dark One.

"Tick tock. Time's up, crocodile," Hook growled and Rumplestiltskin felt himself being shoved back.

His legs refused to obey his commands to balance him, and it was more than soreness in his bad ankle. He toppled back into a shelf of nicknacks, rocking it dangerously and sending a couple of breakables shattering against the floor as they fell. He tried to straighten, but the pain that ripped through his side sent him falling hard against the floor and he saw the blood coating the pirate's hook. His blood.

"You took Milah. Now I'm going to take your life," Hook swore. He squatted down in front of the injured man. "Don't bother pulling for your magic. The poison racing through your system does more than just kill you. You'll suffer, just as I've suffered."

A cough rattled inside of him and Rumplestiltskin pressed one had against the bleeding wound, forcing himself to glare in the pirate's direction. Hook stood, obviously pleased with himself, and he had been right. Even as he tried, Rumple couldn't reach his magic. It was like his senses had been buried beneath a heavy, wet cloth that stifled everything. He reached and reached, even as he heard the pirate's heavy boots crossing the flooring and moving towards the back office. Henry. Henry was in the office, he realized, but trying to rise from his place was proving impossible. The numbness had spread now and as his eyes slipped shut, he hoped against hope that his grandson was a little more like him and a little less like Charming. He hoped Henry would run.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Next time - Chapter Fifteen: The Desperate Choice to be Made, in which Bae and Hook finally come across each other and it's a race to save Rumplestiltskin's life.


	16. The Desperate Choice to be Made

**Chapter Fifteen: The Desperate Choice to be Made**

Like any good eleven year old boy, Henry had always wanted to meet a pirate. When he'd discovered that the stories in his book were true, he'd thought it was possible, but he certainly hadn't wanted to meet one like this. He had peeked out to see what was going on when he heard the scuffle and had seen the leather-clad pirate attacking his Grandpa Gold. The shop owners eyes had gone wide and Henry had to stifle a sound of shock when the intruder pulled back, a hook in place of a hand, and it was covered in blood.

Henry stumbled back away from the door as his grandpa was tossed into a set of shelves and he pushed down the fear. He had to _think_. He wouldn't do his grandpa any good by running for his own safety, but likewise he wouldn't do him any good by rushing in there and trying to take the pirate on. He was young, not stupid, and if Rumplestiltskin had been hurt by him, that meant that he was tough. Tougher than a little boy raised in a small town by a mother who hadn't even liked the idea of him playing sports, much less learning any sort of self defence. No, he had to be clever.

Heavy footsteps were coming his way as he slipped out the back door, carefully easing it shut behind him. As soon as it clicked closed he turned, taking the two steps down to the street and racing around the corner and towards Granny's as fast as his feet would carry him.

Growing up he'd found the size of Storybrooke to be a source of irritation. He couldn't do anything and couldn't go anywhere without everyone knowing about it. Now, the fact that the main street of the town housed so many of his favourite haunts - and the places that his family frequented - was something he swore he'd never complain about again. He swung the front door of the diner open so hard that in nearly collided with the outer window and gained the attention of everyone inside.

"Henry, what's wrong?" Baelfire asked, though from the look on his face he didn't really want to hear the answer.

"Pirate," Henry managed to get out between gasps of cool air, "in the shop. He-"

He didn't get to finish as Bae took off, yelling over his shoulder for Belle to watch after Henry and he'd handle it. The expression on her face said that she had as little interest in being left behind as Henry did and the boy didn't wait to let her or anyone else tell him no. He just took after his dad, knowing that his grandfather's girlfriend would be on his heels.

"Henry, it's dangerous. You shouldn't go in there," she called after him, struggling to keep up in her high heels. She finally stopped just long enough to pull them off, continuing the chase barefoot.

"That's my family. I'm not going to just stay outside and hope for the best," he countered as he neared front door, but she'd picked up speed when she lost her heels and Belle was stronger than she looked.

She wrapped her arms around him, putting all her weight into holding him where they stood and her voice was strained as if she were forcing herself to say it. "Your grandfather would never want to put you in danger, Henry. Not for him, not for anyone. Please, stay outside."

"He was hurt."

Belle hugged him closer. "I know he'd want to keep you safe."

* * *

"Well did you find anything?" Snow asked as glanced down the road either way to make sure she wouldn't be run over while crossing to Granny's.

"Tamara isn't overly forthcoming," her daughter answered in the other end of the cell line. "Surprise surprise, right?"

Snow felt a smile perk her lips. "Utterly shocked. So are you wrapping up for dinner? David and I are meeting over at Granny's if you'd like to join us."

"I... uh... Well I have plans for dinner."

The dark haired princess froze mid-step. "Dinner plans? With who?" she asked, trying to sound casual. She wouldn't say it, but after talking it over with David she thought that Bae - or Neal, or whatever he wanted to go by - coming back into Emma and Henry's lives might not have been the worst thing that could have happened. Family was important and Henry needed his dad around. Emma surely had loved him once. There was no reason that those feelings couldn't grow again, if she were willing to give them the chance.

"Well, August and I were going to grab a bite. He's been helping me go through these files all day."

A little of the excitement washed out, but Snow White was nothing if not an optimist. "Just dinner?"

"Well, probably dinner and drinks. Henry has been begging to stay over with Neal so I told him he could. I may be in kind of late. You guys don't need to wait up or anything..."

"Do you like him?"

Snow could almost hear her daughter's eye roll on the other end. "It's just dinner, Mary Margaret."

She paused, taking a seat in one of the chairs on the diner's patio. "I know... It's just with Neal here and now August-"

"What's wrong with August?"

"Nothing," Snow said hastily. "Nothing at all. If you're happy, I'm happy."

She heard Emma chuckle on the other end. "Just dinner. Don't freak out."

"Who's freaking out?"

"I'll see you when I get home," Emma said as she ended the call.

Snow didn't move for a moment, but remained glued to the chair. Her husband was waiting inside, but she couldn't do away with the feeling that something about this was _wrong_. She should just be happy for her daughter. She had, after all, been a bit at odds with love for a good deal of her life, from what Snow understood. She needed to step back and let her have her chance.

"You look troubled, dear," a sweet, familiar voice said from behind. The Blue Fairy moved around, all gentle smiles as Snow remembered from many years of help and guidance.

"Blue," she greeted happily. "It's so good to see you."

"What's bothering you, Snow?" the lead fairy asked as she took a seat with her.

"Oh, it's silly, really. Emma has a date tonight and I'm just... Well, I should be happy for her, but I have the strangest feeling that it's... I don't know. That it's not right."

Blue smiled, but there was a bit of worry behind that gentle expression. "A mother's instincts about their children are often right."

Snow sighed. "But what do I know about being a mother? Emma has been making these decisions for herself her whole life."

"And now she has you to help her with that. Trust your instincts, Snow. Baelfire is the wrong choice for Emma. As her mother, you should show her this."

"Baelfire?" Snow echoed. "Bae's with Henry tonight. Emma is out with August Booth. The writer that is... apparently Pinocchio." She really did need to ask how all of _that_ had come about.

"Emma is with August?" Blue asked, her expression returning back to its more pleasant state. "Dear child, then you have nothing to fear."

Snow blinked at her. "Why would Neal be such a bad choice?" she asked before quite giving herself permission to and the look her family's patron family gave her bordered on exasperation.

"He is the son of the Dark One. Surely you don't wish a family of good and a family of evil tied so closely. Your daughter is the savior, Snow. She must keep herself away from such darkness as the kind Baelfire would bring with him. Promise me you'll protect her. And Henry."

"Of course I'll protect my family," Snow vowed.

Blue reached forward and placed her hand over the princess'. "I have faith in you that you will. You will help her just as the memory of your mother has always helped you."

* * *

There had been a day that Baelfire would have thought that he could have easily accepted his father's death. He didn't wish for it, particularly, but he had been certain that he wouldn't shed a tear over it. Not that he'd really expected to see his father again, so it really had been a moot point. The fact that his death _had_ hit as hard as it did - to the point that it had any him searching through the darkests of magics - made the bubbling fear that was rising now move through him even quicker. He'd just gotten him back. He'd just gotten his second chance. He'd be damned if Killian Jones was going to take it away from him.

Bae slammed hard into the front door of the pawn shop, nearly taking it off its hinges in his haste. The blinds rattled as it bounced hard and he came to a screeching halt at the sure signs of a struggle that showed themselves in the broken figurines and displaced nicknacks from a case against the wall. Just a few steps from it, laid out as if he hadn't been able to get any further, was Bae's papa. He was curled just slightly on his side, face ashen and one arm wrapped around his middle. Baelfire dropped to his knees immediately, the fear racing through his system as he pushed back grey streaked hair and received a small, pained sound in return. "Papa?"

The curtain that separated the back office from the front was ripped back, caught up by a hook instead of a hand and the pirate captain that owned it came into full view, his blue eyes alight with malice. They came to focus on Baelfire and the younger man leveled a glare that was reminiscent of years long, long past. Those were the years of Neverland, when betrayal after betrayal had been heaped so heavily on such young shoulders that he'd barely been able to bear the weight of it all. He'd been abandoned by the father that had once loved him so dearly to be swept away from a family that had accepted him without question, only to be used - by the same man that had whisked his mother away, no less - to reach Pan's good graces. Hook had sworn more than once when they'd run across each other in the jungles and beaches of Neverland that the boy had it all wrong, but it had always seemed that the pirate captain had an answer ready for any accusation and a clever turn of phrase to twist your words and his own into something that sounded much less terrible than the actions proved to be. Just like the Dark One.

There had been a moment, though, within the three centuries of hunting and fighting and running that had been Baelfire's life in that terrible place. One moment in which he had thought that he might be mistaken on his complete and utter judgement against Killian Jones. That moment still hung in the back of his mind, and it had been what allowed him to walk away from him in New York after the attack, rather than make sure the pirate didn't follow in a much more permanent way than they had. It had been the reason why he'd begrudgingly trusted Hook in the search for Henry, even if they were at each other's throats over the same woman that they both loved. It was that moment, as he knelt over his injured father now, that Bae tried to hold onto. Hook had attacked his papa with poison in New York and magic that had ripped at Mary Margaret's soul and had nearly devastated Regina had been the only thing to save him. If he'd done the same now - and at the angle in which Rumplestiltskin was lying it was difficult to say - Bae wanted to make sure that they'd keep the unspoken truce in this timeline as they had in his own. He'd need something to call on to save his father.

Hook snorted at the sight of him, though who he'd been expecting, Bae couldn't have known. "On your way if you want to live. This isn't any concern of yours."

Killian didn't recognize him. He didn't see the boy grown into a man, and why would he? While the time in Neverland had shown in his eyes and left a few marks on his skin, the years hadn't aged him there. Not physically, anyway. He started to rise slowly, but a hand reached out and a strained voice called out his name, even as it was lost to a pained cough at the end. The pirate heard it though. "Bae?"

"Yeah," Baelfire answered carefully, stooped halfway between standing and kneeling, his hand finding his papa's while his eyes remained fixated on the bright blue ones of the man that had once saved his life when he had known it would gain him nothing but trouble in return.

"Then you did make it back," the pirate captain drawled. "Did you find your family?"

"Sort of. It's complicated, but Killian-"

Rumplestiltskin's hand tightened around Bae's own and before he knew what was happening, his papa was trying to pull himself up. As he shifted, the younger man caught sight of the blood staining his left hand that was pressed against his opposite side, trying to stem the flow. While he was awake now, he was just as pale as when Bae had come in and his eyes were unfocused even as he tried to sit up. "Don't… bother, Bae," he choked out, wincing as he did and his name came out with a shuddering breath. "He's-"

"Finally giving you what you deserve," Hook cut in, his voice coming out in a harsh growl and his eyes darkened with rage. They didn't soften when they flickered to meet Bae's own brown ones. "He abandoned you, Bae. He killed your mother. Why are you coddling him like none of that matters?"

"It matters," Bae answered without missing a beat. "I'll never say it doesn't, but he's my papa and…" He swallowed hard, squeezing the hand in his own. He could see the signs of poison in the wound and Rumplestiltskin's gaze had gone more than a little unfocused again. "And I love him. Killian, please, don't let him die. I know you've poisoned him with dreamshade."

The pirate tensed a little at his words, taking a step back as if to gage the situation a little better. Bae hoped that meant that he was at least considering providing some sort of help. He'd come with Cora, and from what he knew about Cora, if she was aware that the captain possessed such a deadly poison, she wouldn't have come within one hundred yards of him without an antidote available. She was sneaky and she was clever, and above all, she was a survivor. If she had it, he could get it.

Bae felt his heart sink as Hook shook his head. "We're even, lad. We've been even for a good many years now. I hold nothing against you, but your father… He has to die. Give me his dagger and, for your sake, I'll make it a swift death."

The old anger worked its way back into place and Bae narrowed his eyes. "Like hell I will. You better start running, Killian, because I'm not going to let him go. I'm not losing him again."

"I see there's no persuading you any other way then," Hook said quietly. "For that, I hope we don't meet again."

Baelfire clung tightly to his papa who was now leaned back against him, never having made it fully upright when he had tried. There was no stopping Hook's escape out the back door. They had more pressing matters to deal with at that moment. The elder man groaned and winced as his son shifted into a better position to hold him up. His dark eyes lulled back, trying to focus on him. "Henry was in the back," he whispered as if the thought had just struck him.

"He's safe. Belle's with him. They're safe and Hook's not getting anywhere near either one of them," Bae promised.

"Good," his papa breathed, settling back a little better. "You… have a plan?"

"I'm working on it."

"Did this happen before?"

"Yeah, but we can't use what we used last time, Papa. Too many innocent people got hurt. I'll find another way, though. I promise."

Rumplestiltskin's lips stretched into a thin smile. "Not going to let you go again either, Bae," he was already slipping back into unconsciousness as the front door was pushed the rest of the way back open from where it had bounced closed before and Henry dropped to the floor next to his dad.

"Is he okay?"

"He will be, buddy."

Belle caught his eyes, though, and Bae knew that she could hear the stress of the unknown in his voice. His father loved a truly clever woman. "You've seen this before."

"It was different, but yeah."

"How much time?"

"Enough to find a way to save him."

* * *

He would not go to the hospital. He'd roused several times for only a minute or two each, but he'd been very adamant about not going to the hospital to be poked and prodded by doctors that had gotten their medical degrees from a curse. Bae had protested that even if they didn't understand the poison, they could tend to the wound. Curse or no curse, if they could stop the bleeding that would be a start. He was determined that Rumple had found a cure once before and could do it again if they could just buy enough time.

It was Belle that made the call, though, and Belle that raced down the stairs when Whale came. He looked smug when she opened it and for the first time she thought she might know why Rumple was so against the hospital and the infamous doctor specifically.

"So, the great Rumplestiltskin needs my help, does he? Magic not enough to take care of it?"

Belle stared at him, utter shock rooting her in place at the greeting. She'd had very little interaction with the doctor outside of the occasional check-up on her when she was in the mental institution below the hospital for the duration of the curse. He'd leered at her when she thought she hadn't been looking, but other than that he really hadn't paid her any mind. No one had, and she hadn't remembered enough of anything to tell them to act otherwise.

Now, though, she fixed her best glare in place and crossed her arms. "He's hurt and he needs help. If you're not willing to help him-"

"I'm perfect willing, I'm just a little surprised he is. Your... friend and I have had a bit of a wager over the years," Dr Whale explained as he followed her into the house and up the stairs. "He's absolutely convinced that magic is the answer, while science is what _he_ must call on when-"

Belle turned on him, a good three steps up allowing her to look down at the doctor. "Isn't Rumple the one that replaced your arm when _your_ scientific experiment tore it off?"

Whale gaped a little. "He told you that?"

A sweet smile stretched her lips. "Rumple doesn't keep secrets from me. I know all about you, Dr Whale." It was more of an exaggeration than a lie, but it certainly quieted him down and stole that condescending smirk from his face.

"I'm sure he keeps one or two secrets you're unaware of," Whale huffed after a moment. "Shall we?"

She didn't let the words phase her as she turned and led him up the rest of the stairs. Bae was still seated in the chair he'd pulled to his father's bedside and gripping his hand with everything he had. Rumple didn't look any better, but he didn't look a great deal worse either. He stirred a little when she peeked in and slowly his dark eyes slid open. Bae leaned in and spoke softly, but his gaze pulled sluggishly over to the door anyway. "What's he doing here?" he rasped, but at least this time he seemed more awake than he had before.

Whale, to his credit, appeared a little shocked at the sight. "Hell, Gold. What happened to you?"

Rumplestiltskin did not looked pleased, but he shifted, working himself up to his elbows and finally dragging himself up into a slouched sitting position against the pillows. Even that little bit of movement took more out of him than he seemed to expect and Bae had helped him some of the way. Henry, who had been sitting silently in the chair in the other side of the bed popped to his feet, ready to help when called.

"I'll ask again," Rumple managed, his glare fixed on Whale and his breathing was irregular. "What are you doing in my home?"

"Your girlfriend was worried about you," the doctor said softly, and thankfully most of the arrogance had washed out of his voice. "She called."

"Please, Rumple. Let him take a look," Belle pleaded softly, and even as she did she could see his expression soften just a little as he nodded.

Bae squeezed his hand before moving to let Whale in. Rumple's dark eyes followed the doctor distrustfully, but he didn't make a move to stop his son as he explained the injury and the blond nodded his understanding. Whale worked with slow and obvious movements. Belle had to hand it to him, while he seemed a complete ass upon arrival, he did seem to know how what he was doing as he pulled back the bandages that had been used to stem the blood flow and a frown barely tugged at his lips. "Does your magic work against the poison?"

"No," Rumple answered roughly, and he'd gone a shade paler again with the way Whale was trying to get a good look at the wound.

"It's blocking his magic. We don't know why," Bae offered, and them matched the glare his papa shot at him. "He needs to know."

"He can't help," Rumple groused.

"The wound is deep, but it doesn't look like it was made with a knife or anything like that," Whale mused.

"A hook," Henry offered quietly from the side. His grandfather didn't bother tossing a glare his way for it though, only let out a grunt of pain as Whale pressed a fresh cloth down against the wound.

"It's nothing I've seen before."

"The poison's not from this world."

"From the Enchanted Forest then? Does that mean that there's a way to reach through?"

"Somewhere else." His brows knit and his eyes darkened. "No, there's not."

The doctor hummed softly to himself and pulled a syringe from his bag. Rumple didn't have a chance to argue before he'd been stuck with it and Whale pulled blood from his veins. "You're right, Gold. I don't know how to combat magic, but I _am_ a scientist, and study is what I do. It's what I live for. I'll do some research on it and get you the results from what the labs find. Until then-" he turned to look back at Belle and Bae - "I'll patch him up. Since he won't go to the hospital, you two need to keep his fever down and keep him hydrated. If I need to I'll have an IV sent over."

Bae didn't look sold on the ease of it. "And what do you want for it?"

Whale chuckled as he turned towards the door. "I'd heard Gold's son was in town. Just like your dad, huh? We're going to do this by this world's standards. I'll bill his insurance." He smirked at the surprised look Bae wore. "I'll see myself out and let you know when I have something on the bloodwork."

Belle and Bae exchanged a look, and she felt like they needed to do _something _beyond sitting and waiting. Being afraid did nothing to save his life, but she couldn't quite crush the fear either. Bae had shut down when she had tried to press him for information on how they'd handled this in his own time. It was different, was all he would say. He wouldn't go into the hows or the whys, but it was different enough that they couldn't go down that path. She wondered if when he'd determinedly told her that they had enough time to save him that perhaps he'd thought his papa would be conscious a bit more or that the poison had taken hold a bit quicker here as opposed to there. Whatever the case, Rumple didn't look well at all, and he must have seen the worry written across her face as plain as if it had been scrawled there in her own hurried handwriting. He reached out to her, his hand trembling, but a small smile quirked his lips at the edges and she couldn't help but return in as she moved forward to take it, sinking so that she knelt next to the bed and pressed his knuckles to her lips.

"I'm alright," he promised her in a rasping voice.

"Would you tell me if you weren't?"

"Yes," he answered without missing a beat. "There's no point in hiding the inevitable, so I wouldn't." He squeezed her hand. "I've got some time yet."

"If Whale can pick apart what the poison is made out of, you'll be able to find a cure," Bae murmured.

"You're quite certain of that, but that's not what saved me in your time," Rumple said quietly, his tone indicating he already knew. Perhaps they'd spoken about it and Belle had simply been left out of the conversation.

"No it's not, but that doesn't mean it won't be this time. It can be done, Papa. We just have to buy you some time."

* * *

He couldn't have said how long had passed since Hook had broken into his shop and attacked him. It could have been hours or days for all he could tell. Every time he woke either Bae or Belle were by his side. Sometimes they'd be in the chair or Belle might be curled up on the bed next to him, her hand loosely gripping his. This time he woke himself up choking on the air he'd been trying to pull into his lungs. Pain racing through him as he coughed and sputtered, finding hands gently easing him back, one coming to his forehead and brushing back his hair out of his face.

"Easy, Papa. I got you," Bae's voice sounded in his ear and instantly pushed back some of the panic that waking to find the poison trying to constrict his airways brought along with it. "Just breath. You with me?"

"Yes," he whispered after a moment, forcing himself to breathe even through the panic. "I'm here, Bae."

His vision was blurred, but he could see his son's smile through it. Guilt worked its way in. He'd promised him not to let go, but as he lay there now he could feel the poison working its way through him, racing towards his heart, and he knew he didn't have long. He was going to abandon his son again, even though he'd crossed the barriers of time for him. Oh, Rumplestiltskin was no fool. He knew he'd come back for Henry and Emma, but he'd come back for his papa too. He'd come back for his family and now he was dying and was leaving him. "I'm sorry, Bae," he rasped.

"Nothing to be sorry for, Papa," Baelfire answered and squeezed his hand. "You're going to be fine."

Rumplestiltskin tried for a smile and managed more of a grimace instead. If there was a cure, he hadn't been able to find the strength to even rise from bed to search. Bae had had such hopes for him, but he'd failed him yet again. He didn't deserve a second chance with his son, but he'd gotten one, brief as it had been. He'd had one and at least he could tell him how much he loved him and he might actually believe him. He didn't deserve the chance, but Bae deserved to hear it as many times as he could manage.

His confession didn't leave his tongue before the bedroom door opened and Belle poked her head in. "Dr Whale is back. He has something he needs to speak to us about."

Bae frowned, but Rumplestiltskin squeezed his son's hand. "I'll be here when you get back," he promised.

"I know, Papa. You need anything?"

The Dark One forced a smile. "No," he answered, but the word came out as a whisper. He thought, just for a moment, that Bae might not leave. The selfish part of him - and that was a very large part of him, he knew - wanted him to stay, but he resolved to cling to consciousness as long as he could. He would wait for Bae, even if he'd lost any hope that he might have had that they'd find a way around this. He had always known that someday he'd hit a wall where even his nasty habit if survival couldn't save him. He'd always known that. At least he'd found Bae.

"Well don't you look like hell?"

Dark eyes jerked to the end of the bed where the owner of the voice stood smiling at him. "How did you get in?" he demanded. His wards were still strong. Even Whale who held no magic within his being at all had needed to be escorted in by Bae or Belle, but there stood Cora, all smiles in her Enchanted Forest dress that looked absurd in this world.

The smile remained. "Oh. And the crocodile snaps at the little bird," she cooed at him and he felt sick for reasons other than the poison that was trying to steal his life.

"_How_?" he demanded again, his voice raspy and weak. She was in his home, near his son and his True Love. She had let Bae walk away before because she feared Rumplestiltskin. Now, though, he was hardly a threat as he couldn't bring himself to even sit up. He didn't dare try to show her that he couldn't.

Cora moved slowly towards him, pulling a chain from around her neck. The pendant had been hiding beneath the plunging neckline of her dress, but as she moved it closer he could feel magic coming from it, even if he couldn't touch his own. That was _his_ blood trapped there. She'd used his blood to bypass the blood magic wards on his home. "Where did you get that?" he managed.

"You don't remember?" she asked sweetly. "I took it from you when we fought."

He didn't care to remember, really. The point was that he wanted her out, but he couldn't make her. She knew that too, with the way she leaned over him, trapping him when she didn't need to, and her fingers ghosted over the loose shirt he wore that covered the bandaged wound beneath. He winced as they made contact, but she was looking for a wound long since healed. It hadn't even left a scar, but she knew just where to go, and she leaned to speak directly in his ear as her fingers played with the fabric of his shirt along the side of his ribcage. "I caught you with my dagger, don't you remember? How many people can say they've drawn blood from the Dark One?"

Rumplestiltskin lay very still, focused on breathing and not how close she was to causing him more pain than he wanted to think on. "A few, it would seem. Tell me, is Hook one of your little pets?"

"Oh Rumple, I'm hurt," she purred, pulling back and a vial of potion appeared in her hand in a swirl of magic. "I'm here to offer you a truce. Don't you want to live?"

The antidote. Of course she had it. Bae and he had discussed the fact that if she were aligned with Hook she wouldn't risk him turning on her without a plan. Cora always had a plan.

"What's your price?" he managed at last, glancing towards the door and _willing_ Belle and Bae to stay out.

"My daughter," Cora said soberly. "She's cast your curse, Rumple. She's served her purpose. Let me try to get her back."

"For the antidote… you want my silence?"

"You know it will take some work to win her back. Yes, your silence, Rumple. You have your son now. Let me have _my_ second chance with my daughter."

His mind whirled as plans formed, broke apart, and reformed, even though the fog of pain. This was his only chance. "Fine. My silence for my life."

"And I'm sure you haven't told dear Baelfire too much about me?"

"There was no reason to."

"Good. Then we have a deal. Truce."

"Truce," he agreed and reached a trembling hand forward. "The antidote, Cora."

"Why don't we seal the deal like we used to?" she murmured and leaned forward. Her lips pressed against his own and he felt her slip the bottle into his hand. Then she was gone, leaving him alone in the room with only the sound of someone coming up the old, wooden stairs outside of the bedroom for company. He pulled in a shaky breath, uncorked the bottle, and tipped it back to feel the liquid race down his throat, burning the whole way.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I'm having a terrible allergy attack right now, so I'm blaming any terrible grammatical errors or misspellings left uncaught to the fact that my brain feels like it's been turned into a cotton ball.

Next time - Chapter Sixteen: Tangled Webs, in which Bae finds a loophole to the deal and August makes a discovery that will throw Rumplestiltskin's plan into motion.


	17. Tangled Webs

**Chapter Sixteen: Tangled Webs**

The potion Cora had left him burned all the way down his throat, but as it did he could feel it working. Rumplestiltskin had knocked about half of it back when he felt his magic creeping back in. Slowly, deliberately, he made himself stop drinking. His magic could mitigate the damage the poison was doing to him and would eventually flush it from his system. He needed to keep some of the potion to study. There was little question in his mind that Cora had set up a way to receive assurances that he wouldn't get in her way. If she'd done it once, she'd do it again, but he'd be ready next time. He couldn't risk her target being either Bae or Belle the next time.

A warm tingling sensation flooded his body, almost like the circulation had been cut off before. It had, in a way, and now magic flooded his system. _His_ magic.

The door to the room opened and Rumplestiltskin tried to focus enough to open his eyes. His magic was knitting him back together from the inside out, slowly undoing the effects of the poison on his human body. He felt sluggish and worn, but now it was temporary. This would pass.

"Papa?" Bae's somewhat panicked voice reached his ears and Rumple forced his eyes opened and quirked a smile.

"I'm alright," he promised. "I will be, at any rate."

His son must have felt the change even if he couldn't pinpoint the reason. Bae pressed a hand to the side of his face and his eyes traveled down to where Rumple was loosely gripping the vial that still contained some if the antidote. "What's that?"

"The cure," his papa answered with a tired smile, though he hardly expected Bae to reach for it as he did.

"When the hell did you get this?" he snapped as if he expected the elder man to have been hiding it away somewhere, milking the situation for all it was worth.

"Just now," his father answered quickly, trying to sit up, but the room's tendency to tilt put him right back down. "Cora...paid a visit."

"Cora?" Bae echoed. "Why would she…? Is it really the antidote?"

"Seems to be."

"And you trust her?"

Rumplestiltskin snorted. "Absolutely not." He held the bottle up, the light catching the liquid and showing maybe about half of it left. "I'll study the rest in case she tries it again."

"Is that okay? I mean... Is it going to work?"

"It's already started, son. I can feel my magic again. That's what was preventing me from healing."

Bae loosed a breath of relief, nearly falling into the bed next to him. He'd seemed angry just moments before, but Rumplestiltskin knew well enough the strange shapes fear could take. "But you're okay? You're going to be okay?"

A real smile stretched his lips. "Yes, Bae. I promised I wouldn't leave you, didn't I?"

"Yeah you did, but I was worried. Whale hadn't found anything and when I walked downstairs you looked so worn," Baelfire breathed, but the smile faded. "What'd this cost you, Pop?"

Rumplestiltskin grimaced. "Desperate times call for desperate measures, isn't that how the saying goes?"

Bae didn't look amused. "What was the price, Papa? She set Hook on you so she could get whatever it is. It has to be something you wouldn't give unless your life depended on it."

His boy was clever, Rumplestiltskin mused. Though he wasn't a boy any longer. He'd looked so long for his lost child to find a man in his place. A bright, intelligent, _good_ man. He frowned a little. Bae liked Regina. He wasn't going to like it. Rumple didn't like it, particularly, but he'd been running out of options.

"You do realize that the longer you wait to tell me the worse it seems, right?"

Rumplestiltskin sighed. "Regina. The price was to stay out of her way with Regina."

Baelfire pulled in a long breath. "Cora's vicious. She's not going to help Regina and Henry fix their relationship. She'll make it worse."

"I'm afraid it's out of our hands now, Bae. We'll protect Henry. You have my word."

"Well I gave _my_ word to Regina," his son growled, frustration rolled off of him for a moment. He turned then, his eyes fixed on his papa. "How much does Cora know that I know?"

Rumplestiltskin could see where this was going, but he wasn't quite sure if he liked it or not yet. The idea of putting his son in the middle of something Cora was also in did not set well with him. "Not much."

"Great, so I can warn Regina. That way you don't break your deal and she doesn't get blindsided. Everyone's good."

"She won't believe you, Bae. Unless you've got something to convince her of what you know-"

"I do."

"What's that then?"

Bae smiled slowly and his papa knew he had a plan. "Something she's already told me."

* * *

Emma slipped into the apartment she shared with her parents as quietly as she could. She hadn't meant to be out all night, really she hadn't. They'd gone to the White Rabbit for a change of scenery and a drink. A drink had turned into two, two to three, and so on. The fact that her head was pounding and she couldn't actually remember leaving the bar was not the best if signs.

"Hey."

Mary Margaret's soft voice sounded like a shout when it was accompanied by the look that said she'd waited up for her. Emma winced. "Hey. Told you I might be in late."

"You didn't say it'd be the next morning," her mother countered.

"Yeah... Should have called. I didn't want to wake you. Where's David?"

"Down at the station. Someone needed to be there."

Emma had wondered as a kid what it would have been like to have someone to worry over her when she just didn't come home. Now she knew and she wasn't sure she liked it. "I'll text next time. Just... let me hop through the shower and I'll meet him up there." She started to move around her, but Mary Margaret was wearing that expression that said she wasn't going to let it go. There really was no escaping it. Her mother was a stubborn woman. Possibly even more stubborn than Emma. "Unless you just really need to talk about it," she finally relented.

Mary Margaret sighed. "I had the strangest conversation last night with Blue. Mother Superior."

"Okay?" Emma prompted as she managed to at least start up the stairs. She needed to be doing _something_ if she was going to get caught in this conversation.

"She was just worried that you might still have feelings for Neal."

"No offence - I know she's supposed to be the 'ultimate good' or something - but why is it any of her business who I have feelings for and who I don't?"

"Well, she thinks that he might have been affected by his father's darkness. Anyway, I know that you and August have... Well, whatever it is, but I wanted to see if you thought Henry was safe with Neal. If Blue's right..."

Emma stopped from where she was digging through her clothes. "Neal won't hurt him."

"You're sure?"

"I wouldn't leave my kid with him if I wasn't. No... He screwed up, but I think something's happened. I just can't figure out why he won't tell me the truth."

"Maybe he really is from the future? If he used some sort of dark magic to break the laws of magic, that could be why Blue is so nervous about him."

"Not ready to hop on the Neal-doing-magic bandwagon just yet. I'm still having trouble wrapping my mind around him being the son of Rumplestiltskin. Somehow all the things he told me about his dad when we were together makes do much more sense."

Mary Margaret smiled and suddenly she had her arms wrapped around Emma in a hug. "I just want you to be safe and happy."

Emma's lips quirked and she returned the hug. "Working on it."

"I'll let you get dressed," her mother said as she turned, but paused at the stairs. "Fair warning for when you get to the station: your father waited up all night for you before going in and tried calling several times. He might be a little put out."

Emma grimaced. Just what she needed that morning.

* * *

In all the years of the curse, Regina had never set foot into Mr Gold's home. Oh, she'd barged into the shop plenty of times, but this place had been sacred. She had to give him credit, though, as he'd never infringed on her privacy at her personal residence either, but that didn't help the strange and foreign feeling that climbing up those old stairs to the front door brought with it.

She could just barely see movement beyond the stain glass window set into the front door. If she didn't knock soon, someone would notice that she was just standing there and she'd be made an utter fool. She popped her knuckles against the glass three times and stepped back, waiting.

A figure moved closer to the door and she could hear the locks twisting. When it opened, Baelfire grinned at her. "Regina. Just the woman I wanted to see."

The Evil Queen felt all her guards go up. "And why is that?"

The grin didn't fade as he motioned for her to follow him inside. She was just there to pick up Henry, not chat with Rumple's clever son. She didn't trust him, even if she might be willing to play nice for her son's sake. "Where's your father?" she asked after a moment.

"In the living room with Henry. He can't be a part of this conversation. I'm guessing you heard what happened?"

Regina stopped in the middle of the hallway. "News doesn't get to me as quickly as it used to."

"Sorry. I keep forgetting," he murmured. "The Regina I know was more or less accepted by everyone."

She sighed. "Listen, Baelfire-"

"I know you don't believe me. You said you wouldn't."

Regina snorted at that. "I bet I did. Listen, you may be able to fool a few people with your story. Rumple was so desperate to get you back he'd believe anything, but I-" She stopped, glaring at the knowing smile he wore. "_What_?"

"When you first adopted Henry you took him back. You were going to find another baby because you found out Emma was his mother," he said slowly, and she could tell he was reading her expression.

"That means nothing. There may be something in his records about me and your father could have told you about my suspicions."

The accusations didn't seem to phase him as he kept speaking. "You decided to keep him, though-"

"Obviously."

"- because he was the only one in all the realms who believed in you."

Regina's snarky response froze in her throat. "How do you know that? No one knows that. I would never-"

"And you didn't. Not until you told me. You cast the spell that sent me here, Regina, and you and I made a deal. I promised to help you earn Henry back. You were separated from him, just like I was. I get it. I promised you that and my papa always taught me to make good on my word."

She stared at him, trying to find the lie in his words and there was none. "I really told you to say that?" she whispered.

"You really did."

She was stunned, finding herself believing against all odds. There simply was no other explanation. "That's a powerful spell."

"Yeah. You're pretty good," he chuckled and a laugh left her throat on a breath.

"So. What was it that I was supposed to have heard?"

"Right. Pop has this long standing feud with a pirate named Hook."

Regina quirked an eyebrow. "I've heard of him."

Bae shrugged. "Anyway, he attacked Belle and somehow got one over on Papa because he thought he'd left town. He got a good hit in and poisoned him."

The queen listened quietly. If Rumplestiltskin were injured or ill in any form or fashion, she'd wager that she would be one of the last people that he'd want his son blabbering on to about it, but there seemed to be a point at the end of all of this, so she listened. The part about Rumple not being able to be involved in it was something her attention kept turning back to. She wasn't sure if it was Rumple's decision, Bae's, or something outside of both of their control until her mother's name left Rumplestiltskin's son's mouth.

"Cora gave him the antidote."

Regina blinked, turning dark eyes on him. "Say again."

Baelfire grimaced. "Yeah. Her price was interesting: Papa couldn't tell you she's here."

"But you could."

A grin stretched across his face. "He's not the only one that can find a loophole or two."

She snorted. "Like father like son. So she made it through."

"With Hook. My guess is they came on his ship. That's what they did last time, but she was dead and gone before I knew much about her. We're shooting in the dark for the most part."

"And Rumple wants something from me."

"If he does, he didn't say. I just wanted to warn you. Your mom's a real piece of work and… Well, Henry doesn't want to lose either of his mothers, you know?"

A small, real smile pulled at her. "I know." She paused, looking at him carefully. "Is the antidote working?"

"We thought we were going to lose him last night and this morning he's up and telling Henry stories about my childhood."

"No wonder you needed a break."

Henry's father snorted a laugh. "I don't remember half of them. I think he just started making things up."

They entered the living room and Regina saw her former mentor sitting in a high backed chair reminiscent of one he'd kept in his castle back home. While his hands were moving as he spoke, they were slower than usual, a bit more sluggish, and she circled around to find her son listening intently. Baelfire had said they'd been afraid that they'd lose him the night before, and while he certainly wasn't on death's door this evening, he looked truly and utterly worn.

Dark eyes flickered over to her. "Regina. So good to see you. You had a moment to speak with her, Bae?"

"Yeah, Pop."

"Lovely."

"Grandpa, what happened next?" Henry asked impatiently.

A smile stretched his thin lips. "Well, Henry, your father was quite a determined lad."

"So he made it?"

"Indeed he did. Now, if you'll allow it, I need to speak with your mother."

Henry grinned and stood, waving at Regina as he passed. She moved in and stood next to the ill Dark One. "You look like hell."

His expression darkened. "You sound like your mother."

Regina glared in return. "That's not funny, Gold. Especially after what your son just told me. I know you, though. You wouldn't go through the trouble of having him tell me if it didn't help you. What do you want?"

He pulled in a deep breath, steadying himself as his eye met hers. "Your help."

* * *

He had been looking forward to dinner with Jiminy - Archie - all day. There were things that he would share with the man that he'd always known as his conscious that he wouldn't share with anyone else, even Geppetto. While August respected his papa's advice, he hadn't told him everything. He couldn't tell him how he'd bent to the Blue Fairy's wishes to keep two people that loved each other apart, even to the point of landing the woman that he'd promised to protect in prison. It was something that he knew he should come clean on, just as much as he knew he had to tell her that Blue was _still_ trying to interfere in the savior's life, even if it put their own budding relationship in jeopardy. He also knew that, if he were left to his own devices in the end, he'd never get around to telling her any of it. He had to make sure he was accountable for it.

August rounded the corner and started down the street towards the building that housed Jiminy's office. He paused, pulling back very slightly when the door came crashing open and a figure stepped out into the street. She paused, looking right and then finally turning left so that he could see her face. Regina Mills, the Evil Queen herself. The former puppet tilted his head and offered her a wave so as not to be too conspicuous. She didn't bother to wave back as she turned on heel and started down the street.

He liked Storybrooke, really he did, but sometimes it was too weird even for his taste. What she had needed out of Jiminy was beyond him. The former cricket had mentioned that she was, for the most part, avoiding the use of magic unless it was to help someone, so perhaps she'd been back for a session over it. Jiminy had been thrilled when he'd talked about it and was convinced that she was making real, honest progress unlike anything he could have ever even hoped for.

August shrugged to himself as he pushed the door open and took the steps a couple at a time, turning into the long hallway and making it down to the office door. He rapped his knuckles against the wood before pushing it open. "You about ready for… dinner….?" he asked, but the last word caught in his throat as his blue eyes came to rest on his life-long friend that was laid out on the floor of his office. He was still as death and Pongo came bounding up to the terror-stricken writer, wining and seemingly urging him to do _something_.

His hands trembled as he dropped to his knees, checking for a pulse and finding nothing in return. He remained frozen there for a moment, as if Jiminy would pull in a breath if he watched him closely enough. He didn't move and he didn't come back to life, no matter how hard August might have wished that he would. He felt numb as he reached into his pocket and tapped a name on the call screen of his phone. It rang and rang until a familiar voice answered on the other end. "August, what's up?"

"Emma," he breathed and found he had to force the words out. "Jiminy… Archie's dead."

"_What_?"

Where the words wouldn't come before, now they flooded out, running together in their haste. "We were supposed to meet for dinner and I dropped by his office. Regina was leaving when I got here and I walked in and he was… Emma, she killed him."

There was silence on the other line for a moment before Emma exhaled. "Why would she-"

"I don't know, but nothing else makes sense. She was here, Emma. Regina killed Jiminy."

"She's picking Henry up."

"Go. I'll…. wait here until the coroner arrives."

He could almost hear Emma trying to figure out what to say on the other end. "I… I'm sorry, August."

"Just go. Get her."

* * *

The fact that Rumplestiltskin had a plan to use Regina against her mother didn't set well with his son, but Bae couldn't say he was surprised. He'd listened to their quiet conversation while Henry went on and on about stories that Bae remembered in only the vaguest of ways and in the end Regina had shot the idea down with unflinching resolve. She would not be used as a pawn and she would not put herself in a compromising position to be manipulated by her mother. While she didn't say it, Bae could read between the lines well enough to know that both Regina and his father were well aware of the fact that Cora knew all the right strings to tug on, all the right buttons to push that could, potentially, cause Regina to slip, and the former Evil Queen wanted nothing to do with compromising her progress. She was fighting for her son, she told him, and he should understand how difficult that was.

"She has a point," Bae murmured from his place and Regina tilted her nose up in the air, a satisfied smirk playing across her painted lips.

"Thank you, Baelfire. See, Rumple? Your son understands."

"I don't think he really does," Bae's papa said slowly. "Cora is deadly, and if we don't find a way to gain the upper hand then we'll _all_ suffer." He shot a meaningful look in Henry's direction even if his grandson's name never left his lips.

Henry caught on, though. "Why would she hurt me? What'd I do?"

"You've done nothing wrong, my boy," Rumplestiltskin assured him, "but if your mother won't fall into line and Cora sees you as the reason, well… Let's not give her a reason to turn her focus on him, shall we?"

"I won't let her anywhere near him," Regina snapped. "Nor will I act as your spy."

Rumplestiltskin lifted one eyebrow thoughtfully. "We shall see."

Bae's phone began to buzz in his pocket and he pulled it out, Emma name scrawled across the screen. "Hey."

"Hey," she greeted back, though her voice sounded strained. "Has Regina been by to pick up Henry yet?"

"She's here now."

"Don't let her leave."

Bae's eyes narrowed and he glanced over to where Regina and his papa were still arguing about the pros and cons of his idea. He stepped out into the hallway and spoke quietly. "What's going on?"

"Archie's dead. August just found him in his office."

"That's… terrible, but what does she have to do with it?"

"August saw her leaving the office just as he was going in. We're bringing her in for questioning." Emma paused on the other end.

"She's been here," Bae argued.

"Yeah? When'd she get there?"

"Just a few minutes ago."

"Right. It doesn't take long to get from Archie's office to your dad's place. Just keep her there. David and I are on our way over."

She hung up before he could argue it anymore. This was stupid, and she should know that as well as he did. Regina wouldn't do anything to risk what she'd managed to rebuild between herself and Henry. They'd _just_ been over that when talking about Cora….

Cora. It had to be.

"Hey, Henry? I hear Belle coming in the front. Go help her with the groceries, okay, buddy?"

Henry looked like he might argue, but nodded instead, scooting down the hall to where Belle was struggling to get the door unlocked and opened. He felt his papa's eyes on him, but he turned his gaze on Regina instead. "That was Emma. She and David are on their way."

Regina frowned. "She and I discussed this earlier. I'm taking Henry to Granny's for dinner."

"Archie's been murdered."

That stopped her dead in her tracks, "Murdered? By who?"

"They think you did it."

"That's absurd. I've been here."

"Apparently August saw you leaving Archie's office?"

"That lying little… I haven't even been there today. I've been in my office going through paperwork. I _am_ still mayor, you know, even if the Charmings have all but taken over."

Bae looked over to Rumplestiltskin, ignoring the grumblings from his son's adopted mother. "Papa, could Cora have cast some spell to make herself look like Regina?"

"Certainly it's within her capabilities."

"There we have it then. I bet Cora made herself look like Regina, went into Archie's office, and killed him."

"She's trying to turn the town against me," Regina breathed.

"Archie's dead?"

Three sets of brown eyes turned to the hallway where Henry stood with a terrified look plastered across his young face. Bae felt his chest tighten. His son was fond of therapist and this couldn't have been an easy way to learn such terrible news. "Yeah, buddy," he said slowly. "It sounds like it."

"And they think you did it?" Henry asked, looking straight at his adopted mother.

"I didn't, Henry. You have to believe me that I wouldn't hurt Dr Hopper. I've changed. I-"

"I know," he said quickly, cutting off any explanation or excuse she was reaching for. "You have. You wouldn't hurt him, but Cora would. That's what you guys were saying, wasn't it? She's really evil, isn't she?"

Regina looked torn by the boy's words and couldn't seem to respond to them. Instead she crossed the space between them and dropped to a knee. Henry immediately wrapped his arms around her neck and she pulled him into a tight hug. "I won't let her hurt you, Henry."

"We _must_ take action," Bae's papa said, pulling himself slowly from chair. The last several days were shown in the way the lines on his face were just a little deeper than usual and his muscles seemed to respond just a little slower. "To protect those we love, Regina, you must-"

"Playing traitor and siding with my mother does _nothing_ to protect Henry," the former Evil Queen snapped.

"You're not looking at the bigger picture here," Rumplestiltskin countered. "Unless we know what she's after-"

"So what? When they waltz in here and accuse me of murder I just let them?"

"Yes."

Bae loosed a long breath. "Papa, you can't be serious."

"Yeah, we can't let them think my mom's guilty of murder when she's not," Henry agreed. "Please, Grandpa. There's got to be another way."

"There's not."

"Yes there is," Bae shot back, not backing down. "You're just not looking hard enough."

"We're rather limited in our time restraints." He turned his dark eyes on his former student. "You will do this, Regina."

"And how do you plan on making me?" she growled back.

Bae didn't like the look in his papa's eyes. It was clever and manipulative, and he knew that he had a plan that no one else would like. Before any warning could be given, Rumplestiltskin reached out, magic glowing visibly from his fingertips and it washed over Henry.

"You want to protect your son, Regina, this is how to do it."

"What did you do, Pop?" Bae demanded.

"I've buried his memories of this conversation. They're not gone, just hidden. No one's going to believe you, Regina, not when our least favourite puppet is saying that he saw you walking out just moments before he found Dr Hopper dead. Do this, let your mother believe she's the only one you can turn to, and find out what her end game is. As soon as it's necessary, the spell will release and Henry will remember everything."

"Or you can release it now, you little imp," she growled and Bae thought she might try to strangle him.

He cleared his throat. "I'm not going to lie to Emma, Pop. Regina's innocent. There _has_ to be another way. Why not just tell them and they'll be in on it too?"

Surprisingly enough, it was Regina that snorted at that one. "Snow couldn't keep a secret to save her life, much less anyone else's."

Rumplestiltskin's eyes met his son's. "Bae, you've said you trust me. Now's the time when I need that most. I need you to trust that I'm doing what's best for those that we love. I'm keeping them _safe_." The last word came out as a cough and he sank back, stumbling until he landed himself in the chair he'd been seated in earlier and his face had gone pale.

"Papa?"

"I can't fight her," he admitted softly, the honesty piercing through the room like a well aimed arrow. "Not yet."

"You're still sick," Regina murmured.

"He didn't take all of the antidote," Baelfire huffed.

"I don't trust her."

"That's the smartest thing you've said all day," Regina said and loosed a long sigh. "You'll give Henry his memories back?"

"When he needs them most," Rumplestiltskin vowed.

"I'd like to go on record saying that this is a terrible idea," Bae added in and his father's lips thinned out into a grimace, but he didn't say that he was wrong.

The knock on the front door seemed to bring Henry out of the daze that he'd been in and he blinked, looking around the living room until his eyes came to rest on his grandfather. "Grandpa Gold? You okay?"

A strained smile tugged into place. "Yes, of course. Why don't you go see who's at the door?"

"Sure!" the boy agreed and darted down the hallway.

Bae shook his head. He knew what was coming next, and he didn't need the power of foresight or to have lived through another timeline to know. One glance in Regina's direction said that she did too. They would come in, the accusations would be made, and the three of them that knew better would remain silent to it. Oh, Regina would put up a protest, but she wouldn't mention her mother. Baelfire didn't like it, but one look at his papa reminded him that he'd nearly died the night before. He wasn't clear just yet, either, even if he was on the mend. Cora had planned this all just right, and now they had to be smarter than her. Baelfire didn't have to like it. This arena of manipulation was his father's domain, not his. Hesitantly, he took a step closer and put a hand on his shoulder, feeling the heat of a fever even through his shirt. "I trust you," he murmured softly and Rumplestiltskin reached up to cover his son's hand with his own. If they were going to come through this, they had to work together. He just hoped that when everything came to light that Henry wouldn't be too angry.

* * *

Belle had never found lying to be overly useful to her. Often it came back to bite her in the end, leaving her just shy of her goal. Rumple, she knew, was a master of twisting words and people around where he wanted them. He played at them like a game of chess, moving pieces around the board where he wanted or needed them until the perfect scenario was set up for his own purposes. He was more than willing to sacrifice a pawn or two to get to his end. That was certainly one of the traits that she found more difficult to accept.

He hadn't known that she heard the whole exchange, nor had she said anything when Emma had come to the door and they'd arrested Regina. It had ended with the Evil Queen disappearing in a poof of smoke, one last tortured look directed at the son she'd adopted eleven years before. Belle had remained silent, just as Bae and Rumple had, and she'd remained silent until they got him up to bed and beneath the sheets.

"You heard, didn't you?" Bae asked as they lingered at the bedroom door.

"I did."

"What do you think?"

"I think Rumple didn't have a right to make the decision for everyone. He forced Regina into it by using her love for Henry as the pressure point." The words were spoken evenly, her voice never giving way the raging emotions mixing and turning within her like a storm. "I don't think it'll end well for anyone."

"Do _you_ trust him?"

Belle hummed softly to herself. "I want to. I need to."

"But do you?"

She turned her clear, blue gaze to the man that was sleeping fitfully in his bed. She loved him more than she could ever say. Each time he did something that should have sent her away for good, she found herself coming back. She couldn't imagine life without him, and more so, she didn't want to. "I love him," she said instead, "despite the darkness. I have faith in him."

Bae offered her a smile. "Yeah. Me too."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I expected to get so much writing done this weekend and then nothing. I did manage to work on my original novel a bit yesterday afternoon... only to realize as I was trying to fall asleep last night that I'd managed to get my timeline off and pretty much everything I'd written was obsolete. Go figure. Ah well, but at least I was ahead of where I thought I was in writing on this story. That way I can update today!

Next time - Chapter Seventeen: Adding Up, in which Henry is quite certain he has more questions than answers, Belle confronts Rumple, and Emma and Bae find answers that they hadn't even realized that they needed.


	18. Adding Up

**Chapter Seventeen: Adding Up**

This was _not_ the way it was supposed to go. Regina was on the run for killing Archie, Emma was dating August, and his dad seemed like he was avoiding him since Regina disappeared. Baelfire had said that it was because Grandpa Gold was still sick, but Henry knew better. Something didn't add up. Several things, actually, if he thought about it.

Regina had no reason to kill Archie. While his mom had been seeing the therapist in regards to how she was using her magic - something that he hadn't even know until his friend's death - there was no reason to believe they'd fought over anything or that she'd revert so suddenly and so violently to her old ways. She'd come to pick him up, chatted with Baelfire and Grandpa Gold, and then made a run for it after declaring she'd had nothing to do with the murder. Henry hadn't known what to think. He still didn't know. They couldn't find her anywhere and he couldn't help but feel like he was missing something _very_ important.

No one had said anything to him directly, but apparently the night he'd spent over at his dad and grandpa's house Emma hadn't come home. She'd been out with August. It seemed like things always got serious when grownups spent the night out together like that. Regina had always thought he didn't know that Sheriff Graham had been over, but he knew. Granted, he wasn't entirely sure _why_ it was so important, but in his experience all grownups seemed to think that it was.

He didn't think his dad knew about it yet. He'd been too busy trying to save own dad, and Henry kept telling himself that _that_ was why Baelfire had sent him home to Emma's. He hadn't wanted to go, not with everything that was happening, but he'd insisted that Henry would be safe. His grandpa's protection spell that had been cast to keep the Dark One away while Tamara had held his dagger was still in place and strong. No one could hurt him. No one would dare.

None of this made any sense.

"How're you doing, kid?" Emma asked as the little yellow bug idled for a moment before she turned the key and the engine died.

"I don't get it," he murmured. "Why would she do it?"

Emma pulled in a deep breath. "I don't know," she admitted softly, "but I'm going to ask her when we find her."

Henry nodded slowly. "You're not going to hurt her, are you?"

"I hope it doesn't come to that, Henry."

His dark gaze shifted out to the crowd that was already gathering just beyond the convent. People never really died in Storybrooke when he was growing up. Time didn't move, people didn't change, and life ticked on as the clock had remained still. Death had come when Emma did, and in the breaking of the curse. Graham had been first and there had been a couple of others. A bad car crash, a patient in the hospital that had been terminally ill for the length if the curse, and Greg, who Grandpa Gold had killed. Now Archie was gone. Henry was pretty sure that the death of someone you loved was the greatest thing a heart could ever feel. It hurt deeper than he thought he could bear.

Emma was slipping out of the car, eyes searching the crowd. Henry wasn't sure who she was looking for, but he noticed that some people he would have like to see weren't there. Namely Grandpa Gold and Belle. He shouldn't have been surprised, he supposed, as his grandpa had never been friends with Archie, but as far as he knew the two didn't have anything against each other. Bae was there, so the fact that Grandpa Gold wasn't meant that he was still sick. Henry knew he'd found some sort of antidote to the pirate's poison, but the adults wouldn't tell him any more than that. If it wasn't working, he wasn't sure he could take losing his grandpa too, even if he'd only recently discovered the relationship.

No, the boy told himself firmly as he looked out on the crowd of people gathered for the funeral, he wasn't willing to lose anyone else. Not for anything.

* * *

She didn't like this back and forth. Bae had told her that his father had stubbornly refused to take the rest of the antidote, convinced that Cora might try something else and they needed to be ready for it. He'd made his way down to the basement before Belle had known - she and Bae had been taking turns keeping him in bed and resting, but with Rumple's son gone to the funeral that morning, it was difficult to keep an eye on him all the time - and was running test on the potion to try to duplicate it. Belle didn't know how far along he was in that, particularly, but she could tell he'd eaten into his own energy reserves pretty deeply by the time she found him.

Rumplestiltskin was leaned forward against the desk, his dark eyes a bit hazy as he stared at the swirling liquid. There was about a fourth of the bottle left at his side and when Belle tapped on the window to alert him that she was there, he jumped, startled in a way that he never would have been had he been well. She frowned and came around to the door, walking down the steps.

"Hey," he greeted roughly.

"Hey. What are you doing out of bed?"

"This needs to be done."

Belle pushed a short breath out her nose and frowned. "You need to rest," she countered and put one hand on his slim shoulder from behind, the other going to his neck. He'd woken that morning without a fever, but it had risen again and he leaned into her cool touch. "Rumple," she said softly, receiving a distance sort of humming in response. It was usually the sound he reserved for being thoroughly distracted, but she knew it was more than that now. "Take the rest of the antidote."

"I can't. I need to-"

She moved around him so that she was in his line of sight, her steps quick and her eyes sharp as she held his gaze. "I can't lose you," she confessed softly and all the fear that she'd felt the last few days and had bottled filled the words.

Rumple paused. "Belle, I'm not-" he stopped, expression softening. "My dear, I'm sorry."

It felt like a dam breaking as Belle wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. "I know how steep the price was for that antidote. Please don't let yourself go even after paying it."

He went stiff in her arms. "What do you know?" he asked carefully.

"That Cora gave you the antidote and that you forced Regina into playing the part of your spy," she answered, though she'd thought on it long enough now that most of the judgement was left out of her voice.

"Are you cross with me?" he asked quietly.

"I am about Regina, yes. You know how I feel about using people." She didn't let him pull away, but instead pulled him closer. "I love you, and as I told Bae, I have faith in you _are_ trying. I just wish..." She pressed a kiss to his warm forehead and he loosed a breath. "I just wish you would have the courage to trust me, even when you know I'll disagree."

"I'm not a good man, Belle. You know this."

"You're better than you think."

He snorted, the sound dissolving into a cough and he reached for the potion. "Should I have forfeited my own life to protect Regina from her mother?"

"You can still protect her. I've never known you to be willing to limit yourself to only two paths."

"From time to time," he said softly. "How do you do it?"

Belle was startled by the abruptness of the question. "Do what?"

"She locked you up for thirty years."

Ah. Regina. Belle had had trouble with forgiving her, but the Evil Queen seemed to be willing to change, despite the fact that others were convinced she couldn't. "I could imagine it's very difficult to change your ways against all odds. Let's just say that changing one's life from evil to good is the best payback I could ever receive for what she did."

Rumple was staring at her with those large, dark eyes of his. His clever mind, likely muddled by the illness of poison that was still trying to vacate his system, seemed to be working through the words. "You're amazing," he breathed at last and Belle beamed at him and pressed a kiss to his lips.

"Just because we don't agree doesn't mean that I don't love you. I will never stop fighting for you, Rumplestiltskin, but I need you to trust me. I need you to trust in our love. Promise me?"

"I'll try," he murmured.

"I'll hold you to it then," she answered and pulled away. "For now, you need rest."

Rumple nodded sluggishly and let her lead him out of the basement. She may not have won the battle over the remaining antidote, but she felt so much lighter after the knew trust didn't come easily with him, and she could accept that as long as she knew he was trying. It was those moments when he went so far around behind her back that he hoped she wouldn't see it that hurt. She would always fight for him, and someday, she hoped, he'd understand that she knew he was worth fighting for.

* * *

Henry had been right: it didn't make sense, but these things rarely did. Emma had been around Storybrooke long enough to know that Regina could warp a situation in her own mind so that she thought she was the victim in it all. Maybe Archie had said just the wrong thing in a session and she'd held on until it built and built and had just lashed out at him or maybe she was just so evil that she truly could never change. Mary Margaret would scold her if she ever said it out loud, but there had to be those people in the world. Not everyone could be as absurdly good as David and Mary Margaret managed to be.

As with anything, everyone filtered over to Granny's after the funeral. Gone were the celebratory drinks and in their shadow remained much more somber conversation and toasts to a good man who had died much before his time. Some had spoken at the funeral itself, others were speaking here. Marco remained mostly silent with his eyes rimmed red and August standing at his side. At least they had each other, Emma thought as she leaned back against the bar, watching the crowd of fairytale characters that had somehow turned out to be her family and friends. No, Archie's death didn't make any sense at all, but nothing in Storybrooke did.

"I get the strangest feeling you've been avoiding me."

Emma jumped a little and Neal offered her a lopsided smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. He'd never liked these sort of events, even if they hadn't been invited to a great many funerals in their time together. They had crashed a wedding once. _That_ had been fun. "I'm not avoiding you," she after a minute. "I've just been busy. August and I have been doing some research on this Home Office that keeps showing up in all of Tamara and Greg's notes. I'm also trying to set up some sort of trial, but considering your dad is the only one with a law degree that _isn't_ locked up right now for homicide…."

Neal tilted his head in question for a moment and then chuckled. "George. He's the DA. Got it. You're not planning on pressing charges on Pop are you?"

"No. I'm not sure anything would ever stick to that man."

That did bring a laugh from him. "You have no idea. So you're trying to handle this with the Land Without Magic's customs?"

"That's where we are, isn't it? I don't know what to do."

"I think we're kind of in limbo somewhere between, you know? It's not quite without magic, but it's definitely not the Enchanted Forest either."

"Yeah, well, I'm going to have to figure something out about how to handle limbo-land. We've got another murderer we're after now." She sighed. "Henry's devastated."

Neal cringed. "I know. Have you… ever thought about it _not_ being Regina?"

"A lot of evidence is pointing in her direction."

"What if it's a setup?"

Emma stopped and looked up at her former lover. "Do you know something I don't?"

"Uh… No?" Neal stumbled through and he flashed her that grin that made her _know_ he was lying.

"You do know withholding evidence is illegal, right?"

"I don't know anything I can tell you, sheriff," he answered, though she knew he was working his words around. He'd always been good at that, and knowing his heritage now she wasn't surprised. They had a frightening amount in common when she really thought about it, and that worried her for the mischievous streak she knew Henry already had. Hopefully David and Mary Margaret could help balance that out, but she wasn't sure about it. Mary Margaret had her moments….

"Emma, I do hope you're getting closer to finding Regina."

Emma looked over, feeling Neal follow her motion and Mother Superior - the Blue Fairy - stood in her frock and looking very holier-than-thou in the way her chin was tilted up just enough that it gave off a subtle vibe of moral superiority, but not enough that anyone could call her on it. The conversation she'd shared with Mary Margaret the day they'd found Archie's body came to mind and the savior of Storybrooke tried not to glare too openly. "We're putting everything into it."

"Good. I fear for Storybrooke with the Evil Queen back to her old ways." She turned a steely look on Neal and nodded.

"Hey, Blue," Neal answered with a tight smile.

"Baelfire," she said, though it sounded more like a dismissal than a greeting. She turned back to Emma. "Are you not here with August?"

"I'm not here with anyone," Emma countered sharply.

"I'm sure he and Marco are going through much right now," Blue answered. "It's good that you two have become so close. He'll need you in these dark days ahead of him."

Well, Emma knew where Blue's vote lay, but to say that she didn't care would be an understatement. "Yeah, I'm sure he'll need a lot of friends. Listen, Neal and I were discussing something, so if you don't mind…?"

The lead fairy looked offended, but her features smoothed out quickly. "Of course."

Neal turned to Emma as soon as she was gone. "Not sure if I should ask what the hell that was first or what's going on between you and August."

Emma rolled her eyes. "You're going to get jealous after a decade?"

"Hasn't been that long for me," he murmured, and he must have thought he said it quietly enough that she didn't hear so she let it slide. She didn't want to get into it at the wake.

"I don't know what her deal is. She pulled Mary Margaret aside and basically encouraged her not to let me get close to you. I don't know. Something about how your dad's darkness rubbed off on you and all this crap."

"Did she?" Neal asked, tilting his head to the side and his eyes grew a little darker. "Interesting."

Emma opened her mouth to answer, but snapped it back shut again as someone moved out of her line of sight to reveal the very same fairy that had just infiltrated their conversation now cornering August alone. "What the hell is she up to?" she muttered, even as the writer lifted his hands in mock surrender.

"_Emma_," Neal hissed, but he didn't reach out to grab her before she slipped away.

"Listen," Emma growled, ignoring the fact that Neal was still trying to stop her from behind or that August looked like he'd prefer to be buried six feet under rather than have her involved in this conversation. "I don't know how you people did it in the Enchanted Forest, but who I date, who I see, and who I end up with is _my_ business. Not yours. Got it?"

Blue stood staring at her, eyes wide. "I didn't mean to-"

"Yeah you did, so just save it." Her voice was low so as not to bother anyone else, but it was fierce.

Neal let out a low whistle behind her and August chuckled. "Told you."

Emma whirled on him. "Is this the first time she's bothered you about this?"

August swallowed hard, his voice small. "No."

While Emma was ready to turn her wrath back on the fairy, Neal snorted behind her. "How long?" he demanded, his voice calm, but she knew the tone. That was the calm before the storm. He knew something she didn't.

"Say what?" August almost squeaked.

"How long?" Neal repeated, taking a step closer, his eyes flickering to Blue briefly. "Did she start telling you to keep Emma away from me after my papa returned you to your human form or was it earlier than that?"

"Listen, when she approached me about it after your dad changed me back, I _told_ Blue that Emma makes her own decisions."

"Baelfire," Blue cut in, "this is not the-"

Dark brown eyes, smoldering with a fury that Emma hadn't seen in a long, long time turned on the lead fairy. "That's it, isn't it? _You_ told him who I was. _You_ sent him after us. I always wondered how he knew. _You_ did it."

"Baelfire…."

"No. I want to hear you say it. Did you send August to drive me away from Emma that night in the alley? Did you know she was pregnant with Henry?"

Emma felt a coldness set deep in her chest as the accusations became clearer. He'd been there that night. That was how Neal and August knew each other. One glance in his direction showed all the guilt he felt clearly displayed across his face. Blue, on the other hand, lifted her nose a little higher. "I did what I needed to to make sure the savior and her son wouldn't be tainted by the darkness that had already dug itself too deeply into you. I kept them safe."

"So you knew?" Neal pressed. "You knew that if I walked away, I'd be walking away from my _son_? That I'd be doing what my father did to me… and his father did to him?"

"Baelfire, your son is special. He-"

"Yeah he is," Neal snapped. "And you'll stay the hell away from him."

"You don't understand. The Dark One won't let him live." She paused and Emma thought she might have seen a spark of power between them. "If you've done what you've say you've done and you're from where you say you're from, then you likely know. You know who Henry is and who he will be to Rumplestiltskin."

"Yeah, I do. He's his _grandson_. Nothing's more important to my dad than family. Nothing. I've seen it."

"If you choose to trust your father, you've killed your son," Blue said tightly.

"Woh. No one's getting near Henry," Emma cut in. "We're done with this conversation, Blue. You-" she looked to August - "and I will have a chat later. And you-" she grabbed Neal's shirt sleeve and started pulling him out of the diner- "and I are having a chat right now and you're going to tell me _everything_."

* * *

Bae nearly tripped over his own feet as Emma dragged him out of the diner. He hadn't meant to say all of that, to let all of that get out into the open just yet, but he'd been so angry, so hurt by it. He hated being manipulated above most anything else and that damn fairy had been manipulating him most of his life. She had been moving him in and around and it needed to end.

"What the hell was that, Neal?" Emma growled, shoving him hard so that he actually stumbled back.

"You won't believe me anyway," he countered. "I don't know why you ask."

"I just want the _truth_. Is that so hard?"

"I can't tell you, because all you'll cling to is the bad part, not the part about how he gave his life for Henry and Belle and me. You won't believe that because _you_ haven't seen it yet!"

She glowered at him and he straightened up. "Try me," she demanded.

Bae tilted his head back and pulled in a deep breath. "Only if you swear something in return."

"What?"

"That you'll come with me over to Pop's house and let him find a way to _show_ you what I've seen."

"How do I know I can trust him?"

Bae grinned. "Because I think you can actually do the magic."

He watched her think it over for a moment before finally nodding. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"That's what I said, isn't it? Now tell me."

"There was a prophecy centuries ago that Papa received. It said that he'd find me, but that a kid would lead him to me and that the kid would be his death or something like that."

"Henry didn't lead you to him. You just showed up."

"He did the first time. He's already died… That's why I'm here. I lost my papa and you and Henry. I had nothing, so I gave everything to find you. I don't know if the prophecy still stand or not, but I do know that Papa would give anything to keep Henry safe. I saw him give his life for us."

"Neal…."

"He's not going to hurt Henry, I promise you. Honestly, I don't even think he's realized Henry is attached to the prophecy." He pulled in a steadying breath. "Let's go."

"Go where?"

"To Papa's house."

"Right now?

"You promised."

"Yeah, I guess I did."

* * *

Regina hadn't known what to expect and Rumple hadn't been able to tell her. His visions were spotty at best when it came to this land, and she wasn't sure he would have told her if he'd known. She didn't know where her mother was hiding or when she'd show. Rumple had seemed convinced that she would, but the queen had been waiting for nearly two full days now and hadn't heard a word.

"Mom?"

The mayor perked at her desk. It had been a long couple of days, but she couldn't have hallucinated her son's voice, could she? She'd finally come to her office because it was the only place that felt safe.

"Mom? Where are you?" Henry's voice echoed through a mirror and Regina saw her son's reflection. He was just behind the wall in her vault. Rumplestiltskin had said that he'd remember when he needed to most. He was there for her now. He remembered!

Regina pulled the door open. "Henry?"

"Mom!" he called out and flung his arms around her middle.

She hugged him back tightly, wanting more than anything to explain that she hadn't killed his therapist, how she'd been framed, but the words wouldn't come. She couldn't ask him to lie for her, and as much as she hated to admit it - and as much as she would rather it be anyone else but her - someone did need to keep an eye on Cora.

Henry had stepped back and was studying her now, head tilted to the side and his expression strange. She could place it, but she knew it didn't belong on his face. "I need you to not be angry with me," he said very calmly, and even as he did magic stirred in the air and her son was replaced with the very woman that Rumple had sent her after. The imp had been right afterall. Cora had come to her.

"Mother," Regina breathed.

Cora held up her hands, palms outward. "Dear, I need you to listen. I understand why you sent me through the looking glass and why you tried to have me killed." Tears were in her eyes and Regina couldn't place a time in her entire childhood when she'd seen her mother cry. She stood there in her office, head held high and eyes glassy, speaking words that made the former Evil Queen blink owlishly. "It's alright."

"I think it's not alright," her daughter stammered.

"I love you," Cora cut off any further argument and Regina froze. She couldn't fight this. She had to pretend to believe her, even though every survival instinct inside of her screamed to run for the hills. She'd framed her, she'd manipulated her, all to make her come running back. That was what she wanted, so Regina steeled herself and put on her best face for the situation.

"Mother," she said softly and felt the elder woman's arms go around her neck. Her heart broke in her chest as, just for a moment, she tried to make herself believe that this could all be real. "I love you too."

* * *

TBC

Notes: Next time -

Chapter Eighteen: Proof Delivered, in which Emma discovers that dreamcatchers catch more than dreams, Henry makes a discovery, and Bae and Belle are sneaky.


	19. Proof Delivered

**Chapter Eighteen: Proof Delivered**

Neal had taken Henry aside to explain what they were going to do and Emma was starting to think maybe he was a little crazy these days. Maybe she was too for going along with it. Henry, predictably, was elated to have the chance for his father to convince his mother of what he thought he already knew, and while she'd promised Neal she'd go, Henry had been the reason why.

"Like I said," Neal murmured quietly as he paused at the front door, "he and I haven't talked about the prophecy here. There's no reason for him to link it to Henry."

"If Henry's part of the prophecy, he'll put it together eventually," Emma countered from the steps of his father's home.

"I'll handle it," Neal promised and waited for her to nod in agreement before he pushed the door open. She followed him, the feel of the house hitting her immediately. She hadn't been by since the Moe French incident and there hadn't been magic in Storybrooke at that point. It had worked its way into every crevice of the town now, this house certainly no exception. If anything, there was likely more magic here. She supposed in a way it had always been there, even if it had been dormant. Afterall, the town had been born out of a curse cast. The town _was_ magic, even if no one had been able to reach it until Gold had done whatever he'd done to release it.

Neal had disappeared down the hallway, leaving Emma to wait. The house didn't smell as musty as she remembered it, but she supposed that happened when people actually lived in it instead of using it as glorified storage space. Oh, she thought Gold probably slept there a few nights a week before the curse broke, but in the first weeks she'd been in Storybrooke she'd done her fair share of people watching - after hour people watching once Regina had gotten her kicked out of the inn - and Gold's old Cadillac had sat outside his shop all night long more than one night a week. Before Belle and before Neal, he hadn't seem to have much to go home to.

Henry had shown himself to be a great judge of character since she'd gotten to know him. He had faith in people that Emma couldn't quite wrap her mind around. He'd had faith in her and brought her around to being the so-called savior of the little town he'd grown up in. He'd been right about the curse. Maybe, just maybe, he was right about Neal. If he was, maybe Neal, in turn, was right about his dad.

Voices sounded from up the stairs by the door and it sounded like Neal had taken the far set of stairs up at the end of the hall. No wonder Henry loved this house. Emma could hear Neal arguing softly with his father and the sound of shuffled footsteps accompanied the voices as they started down the stairs. "Belle has a point."

"As do I. What if it's you next time or her? Or, heaven help us, what if she goes after Henry? I won't be caught unaware of how to fix the situation."

Emma watched the shop owner and his son move carefully down the steps. Henry had been worried about his grandpa and now she saw why. They were on the lookout for Hook after the back-to-back attacks on Belle and Gold, but in the grand scheme of the unknown dangers - including the Home Office with Tamara and Regina killing Archie - Hook was the last on Emma's list of people to worry about. It did look like the pirate had done a number on his old adversary though. She felt a little guilty over having toyed with the idea of actually helping Hook get to Storybrooke, knowing full well what his intentions were once he got there.

"Who's going after Henry?" Emma demanded by way of a greeting.

Gold's dark eyes came to rest on her. "No one. That's quite my point, Miss Swan. I hear you've come for proof today."

"Hey, if you're not up for it, we can do this another time."

A smirk perked his lips, reminiscent of the days when he was one of the few in town that knew exactly who he was. "I won't be performing the magic, of course. You will."

Neal shot her an _I told you_ look as his dad leaned on him to limp towards the sitting room. Gold sat heavily on the sofa and sank back like the movement had taken all he had from him. Emma had assumed that his magic would take care of the poison that Neal had said Hook had given him, but it looked like that wasn't entirely the case. Maybe magic wasn't as powerful as she'd thought.

"That box on the table there should have what we need," he said as he pointed, sending his son after it.

"Where's Belle?" Emma asked.

"Shower. I'm going to guess she has barely left Pop's side since I've been gone."

Gold smirked. "I don't think she's happy that I went down to the basement earlier."

"Couldn't imagine why," Neal grumbled as if that were not the first time he'd expressed his displeasure over it. He reached over to the box in question and pulled something familiar from it. He stared a moment, and Emma shifted to see why. A short laugh left him as he held the dream catcher up. "Flypaper for nightmares."

Gold quirked an eyebrow but let it slide. "It does more than catch dreams," he explained. "It can catch memories. Come here? Both of you."

Emma glanced over to Neal and he shrugged, moving forward. She followed slowly as the shop owner took the dream catcher and, without rising from his seat, it began to glow as he moved it closer to his son. The blonde could feel the change, like a spark in the air, and the netting in the center of the dream catcher began to swirl and glow. Gold handed it to her. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Those are the memories Bae holds from before he came here."

"Okay, this could be anything. They're jumbled."

"You must will it to see it, Miss Swan. Focus."

She shot him a glare. "I can't."

"Yes," Gold answered in a strained voice as if he were forcing his own patience, "you can."

"Just give it a go, Emma," Neal coaxed and she sighed. There'd be no getting out of this until she at least tried.

Emma focused in on the jumble, pushing her thoughts and her wants at it. Slowly, they started to become clear, and it looked like she was watching a movie from Neal's eyes. She saw herself on the street, eyes wide and whispering his name and she could almost feel the surprise as he answered in turn. She saw clips, sometimes blurred, sometimes not, of Henry and her and Storybrooke events that had _never happened_. She saw a portal and her own face as she reached for him, refusing to let go and it blurred into a jungle where they fought side by side against...something.

Then they were standing and watching Gold and a boy dressed in all green. They seemed to be arguing about something and the image blurred, even as Gold called his knife to him and plunged in deep into the kid's back. Deep enough to go all the way through. The boy was replaced with a man and then they were gone in a burst of light, leaving an empty street and a swirl of magic behind.

Gold made a small sound as he watched from the couch, but Emma didn't dare break eye contact with the images as they shifted again, this time landing them in what looked like the Enchanted Forest. The images were moving faster now so that they almost blurred together. Neal and Belle seemed to be traveling, there was some sort of door in the snowy ground, and a book.

"Emma, let go," she heard Neal's voice in her ear and as she obeyed, she felt the way the magic had burned her fingers and her knees went weak beneath her. She might have hit the floor hard had he not been right there to catch her and ease her to the other end of the long couch. "You okay?"

Emma blinked up at him. "It's true. You weren't lying."

That smirk tilted his lips. "Told you."

She took a swing, but it lacked its usual strength. "Don't be an ass."

The smirk only widened until it was an all-out grin.

Emma sighed and turned towards Gold. "Why do I feel like I just ran a marathon?"

"All magic comes with a price," he said with a tired smile, and she wondered just how steep of a price one might have to pay to cross the barriers of time. Neal looked okay, but was it possible that the price hadn't hit him yet? Time travel seemed like kind of a major thing, and if it had taken that much out of her to channel some memories...

"You'll feel better in a bit," Gold promised.

"Right. I need to get back to the party or Henry'll give David and Mary Margaret the slip. Can I talk to you for a sec?"

Neal nodded, but didn't look too sure of the decision as she made it to her feet and started towards the door. She felt mostly steady and most certainly better than she had a few moments before. She'd always bounced back pretty quickly from things, so she hoped that a headache and some wooziness were all that she had to deal with.

"You good to drive yourself back?" he asked as they paused on the front porch.

"Oh yeah." She pulled in a deep breath. She was bad at dealing with emotions. She was worse at voicing them, but this man had apparently traveled through time for her and their son. She supposed she at least owed him a little honesty in return. "Listen, I know you and Henry have hit it off, and that's great, but-"

Neal held up his hands. "Woh. I'm not guilting you into anything, Emma. Just because you know it happened doesn't mean you have lived it yet."

"That one memory… when you fell through what looked like some sort of portal? I told you I loved you there."

"Yeah," Neal breathed, "but even when you and Henry had to leave… it wasn't… I don't know where we stood. I'm not asking for anything in return, Emma, other than a chance to be here. I need my family. All of it."

"I get that," she murmured and a real smile perked her lips. "So no pressure?"

"None at all."

"I can deal with that and see where it goes."

The grin that spread across his face was almost comical and looked like it might have hurt it was so big. "Sounds like a plan," he agreed and she had to remind herself that they weren't kids anymore. She couldn't let her emotions run away with her. First she had to handle the situation with August and then they could see what happened between she and Neal. In the end, it was Henry that mattered. She couldn't risk getting involved with his father only to let it crash and burn, taking their awkward little family with it.

* * *

Regina would have thought that playing the part of the daughter so desperate for her mother's love that she'd believe any lie spun would be difficult, but she fell into the role quite nicely. Cora swore that she'd changed her mind and put aside her vengeance the moment that she knew her daughter had loved her enough to cry over her coffin. She'd started in on her own plan then, when she knew the casting of the curse was inevitable. Regina was well aware of what that really meant though: once the curse was cast, the Evil Queen had won and would be at her highest point. Cora would have nothing over her. She had to wait until Regina was at her lowest to approach her, and when she'd come to Storybrooke and seen her doing so well, she'd obviously put her own plans into motion. Regina clung to this secret truth that she knew. That and the thought of Henry's face would keep her from slipping into the pit of her mother's lies.

"So what _are_ you doing here, Mother?" Regina asked as she leaned back against her desk.

"I'm here for you, darling. I want to help you."

"Help me do what?"

Cora smiled, the motion never quite reaching her cold eyes. "I want to help you win back the one person who matters most to you."

"Henry," Regina breathed her son's name out before she thought better if it. Rumple had been right. Cora would see him as a threat if Regina didn't bend and bow.

"Exactly. Snow's daughter doesn't _deserve_ him, dear. You do."

"He won't just come to me, Mother. He thinks I murdered the bug."

Cora's smile didn't fade. "Oh sweetie, when we're done you'll be the one he runs to."

Regina didn't like the tone that her mother held. "What's your plan?"

"A distraction. I have quite a gift on Hook's ship for your little town. A giant. We'll set him loose and watch them squirm."

"And what will we be doing?"

"Always so clever, my dear. I knew I raised you well. We will be finishing what our dear captain was unable to do. We're going to find the Dark One's dagger. With it, no one will dare stand against us. You will have your town, your son, and your life without having to worry about that pesky little savior Rumple set up to ruin everything."

So this wasn't about her, Regina thought sourly. This was about Rumplestiltskin. Typical. As pleasant as the idea of doing away with Snow, Charming, and Emma sounded, she knew Henry would never forgive her. Dark One in their possession or not, her son's true love towards her meant everything. She would earn it, no matter what. He was the only happiness she needed.

* * *

He'd thought he was being sneaky, but he'd been caught, and by August of all people. Not that he had anything against August. Not really, anyway. His mom had been angry at him for something, but his dad had been angry at the Blue Fairy. Not that they would tell him what was going on. He was left out of everything, even though he'd proven he could be a great help to them. Even his attempt to try to find out more information had been thwarted. By August. And there'd been a day when they'd been partners in crime.

"You do realize Regina is on the loose and if she catches you out on your own she'll snap you right up, don't you?"

Henry made a face. "It's not like she doesn't know where I live," he said sensibly. He still couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about Regina's hand in Archie's death.

"Let's not make you a target though, okay?"

Henry looked up at him. Maybe August knew something he could share. "You could always come with me. Then I won't be a target."

Blue eyes narrowed just a little, but there was no real irritation there. "Tricky kid, aren't you?"

"Maybe a little. Have you met my family?"

That pulled a grin out of the author and he reached over and ruffled the boy's hair. "So where to?"

"I don't know. Let's start walking and you can tell me me why Mom's mad at you and Dad looked like he wanted to yell at the Blue Fairy."

August snorted. "Yeah, because I'm not in enough trouble with your parents. I need to go and tell you everything and dig my hole deeper."

"They're going to tell me anyway, you know."

"Yeah, I know." August stuck his hands into his pocket and they walked on in silence for a few minutes. Henry was starting to think that August had made his decision the remain silent when he sighed. "I _might_ have been contacted by the Blue Fairy before anyone else woke up in Storybrooke."

"Before even Grandpa Gold?"

"Yeah."

"Before Emma came to town?"

"Before you were born," August admitted softly.

The words clicked and Henry slowed his pace to whirl around and stare at the man that, while he didn't want him dating his mom, he'd still considered a friend. "_You're_ the reason my parents split? Why Dad left and Mom went to jail?"

Guilt was etched so deeply into the older man's face that it might as well have left a scar there. "If it helps, I let your dad know as soon as the curse was broken."

"Yeah, and started dating my _mom_," Henry groused. They'd walked away from the Main Street in town by this point, hedging closer to the docks. He didn't know where they were going, specifically, but now he didn't care.

"Hey," August returned defensively, "I asked her about her and your dad. Several times. She said they were done."

Henry shot him a look. "You don't know Emma at all then. She lies to herself all the time on the really important stuff. Guess you do too."

He could feel August watching him with wide eyes as he stalked forward, anger getting the better of him. He didn't want to talk to him right now. If it hadn't been for August, he might have grown up with both of his parents. Baelfire would have found a way to help Emma believe and to break the curse. He was good. He'd have chosen the right thing, but August and Blue had put a stop to it. Why the Blue Fairy wanted them apart was beyond Henry though and he turned back around on the former puppet. "Why would Blue tell you to do that?"

August shrugged. "At the time she indicated that that was the best way to reverse my punishment for not taking care of Emma. She thought your dad would be dangerous." He paused, sighing deeply. "I screwed up. Your parents have always belonged together."

Henry normally would have agreed wholeheartedly, but his attention was snagged by a bird perched on what looked like nothing. He squinted, inching closer to the pier, and saw another one come to land on the air as well. "Do you see that?"

"Yeah. I do."

He didn't know what it was, but that wouldn't stop him from finding out. He heard August's weak protest, but ignored it as he scurried down the pier. The closer he got, the more he was certain that the birds were sitting on something that they simply couldn't see.

Henry peered over the edge of the dock to see waves crashing up against something that wasn't seen. "It's like there's a boat here but there's not," he mused.

August let out a startled cry as he tripped over something that landed him face down on the pier. He groaned, but Henry went immediately to the spot, dropping down and running his hand across the old wood along the path until they came into contact with something. He glanced back and saw the curiosity in August's eyes that likely matched his own. Carefully he straightened and started up what might have been a ramp. He turned. "You coming?"

The author nodded slowly and followed Henry up the invisible ramp. Not a lot phased him, but he seemed impressed by the cloaking spell as they walked through it, revealing what had to be a pirate ship. "Wow," Henry breathed, dark eyes wide.

The deck stretched out and the sails rustled overhead, the birds he'd seen sitting on the mast. He could see the ocean and the docks they'd just come from. Apparently the cloaking spell was one-way.

"Your parents are going to kill me," August grumbled.

"Too late for that," Henry answered with a shrug and started below deck. He didn't really care if August got into trouble for "letting" him wander around a pirate's ship. There wasn't much he could do to stop him anyway without hauling him off against his will.

"Hello?" a muffled voice called from below, indistinct, but certainly from the hold.

Henry took the stairs quickly. "Hello!" he answered back, trying to get a feel for where the voice had come from.

"In here!" the reply sounded and he heard August coming down the steps.

Henry didn't wait though. He sprinted forward, pulling the compartment open that the voice had come out of and his eyes went wide. "Archie! You're alive!" he managed, and the words seemed to trigger something. All at once, it was like a lock was undone in his mind and memories flooded in. Briefly, he wondered if this would have been what everyone felt when the curse had broken, just on a smaller scale than what they had experienced. The conversation between his dad, Regina, and his grandpa filled his mind and he remembered the way his Grandpa Gold had reached out to him, stopping the memories behind his own personally created plug. Cora had killed Archie - or at least she'd killed someone and made them look like Archie - and framed Regina. Grandpa Gold had convinced Regina to go undercover to protect them from her mother. "Mom's innocent," he breathed out.

"Innocent of what?" Archie managed.

"We thought you were dead."

"Jiminy?" August gasped, instantly going for the cutlass that was on a shelf and cutting through the ropes that bound him up. "You're okay!"

"Yes, I am," the therapist said as pulled himself out of the hole.

Henry turned on August. "We need to get to Grandpa Gold's house _now_."

* * *

He was sure they'd made the right choice, but he knew there'd be consequences. Oh, there were consequences for everything, and while an angry Dark One was nothing to trifle with, the fact that the Dark One in question was also his papa and his partner-in-crime's True Love did help matters. Rumplestiltskin would get over it. Eventually. For now, Bae just felt relieved that his father was finally resting. The fever had broken - hopefully for good this time - and the terrible wheezing sound that had never quite left him, even in his stronger moments after he'd taken the first half of the antidote, had eased, leaving him to breathe normally as he rested.

"We had to do it," Belle said softly from his side.

"Oh I know that, and you know that, but I'm dreading telling _him_ that just a little."

His father's girlfriend chuckled. "He's done a few things we disagree with because he felt they were necessary. It's give and take."

"You're sneaky. I always forget how sneaky you are."

Belle smiled innocently and Bae chuckled. She had been the one to sneak the last of the antidote into his tea and coax him into drinking it. This woman was clever and bright and beautiful, but above all, she was _good_ for his father. She watched out for him even when he refused to watch after himself, and if Bae had learned anything it was that when his papa became focused on something, his own health took a backseat until he was done. He was a determined man that, since taking on his curse, _always_ got what he wanted in the end. Right now, he seemed to want his family safe from Cora, at any cost.

Bae's cell rang in his pocket and he stepped a little further away from his papa's bedroom door to answer. "Hey Emma. What's up?"

"Is Henry there?"

"No, I thought he was back at the diner."

"I got back and no one seems to know where he is. August is missing too."

"Listen, Emma, August can be an ass sometimes, but he wouldn't take off with Henry. Maybe they went up to one of the rooms to talk. He was pretty torn up about Archie."

She was talking in his ear, but Bae was distracted by the sound of the door opening downstairs. All the doors were locked up tight right now and the only thing that would have opened them was blood magic. "Hold on," he told her and walked down the stairs to the first landing. "Found him. He's here." He put the phone against his chest. "Hey buddy, what's… _Archie_?"

Henry looked up, dark eyes clever and demanding. "We need to find my mom."

* * *

TBC

Notes: Next time - Chapter Nineteen: Risks Worth Taking, in which a plan is formed, risks are taken, and Rumplestiltskin wants no part of it.


	20. Risks Worth Taking

**Chapter Nineteen: Risks Worth Taking**

Over the years Henry had learned to accept a great many things. He had to, really, when he made the conscious decision to believe in magic and fairy tales against all odds. He'd been right, of course, and the fact that he'd been right about so many things since - including the fact that Regina was innocent of Archie's supposed death - should have been a source of relief to him. Instead, it frustrated him. No one _trusted_ him, even after he'd proven time and time again just how clever he could be. They couldn't deny it now. He knew everything, and they needed to stop lying to him. It hurt, really, that they thought he couldn't be trusted with something like this. He understood what it was to play a part, but he would have much rather have done that than have been forced into it. He didn't think it was asking too much for an answer - anything, really, because he'd been so frightened for his grandpa the last few days that he couldn't really find it in himself to be angry, particularly, but he was most certainly still hurt by it - as to why they didn't and wouldn't trust him.

He'd demanded to speak to Grandpa Gold at first. Henry was young, but he wasn't stupid. He knew who pulled the strings on something like this, but his grandpa was still out of pocket. He dad's dad was upstairs after Baelfire and Belle had convinced him - those were his dad's words, but Henry was certain there was more to _that_ story too - to take the rest of the antidote that he'd received from Cora. So it seemed he was in limbo, sitting on the couch in the downstairs room that seemed to be used for Belle's own mini reading room. The adults that were currently awake in the house - Baelfire, Belle, Archie, and August - were discussing the situation, waiting on Emma to arrive.

Footsteps echoed in the hall and Henry looked up, finding his former psychiatrist and current friend standing in the doorway. He was still disheveled, but had been adamant that he simply couldn't leave everyone else to deal with this threat. He needed to be there in case he could contribute anything. Henry understood the sentiment, though it seemed that the others were much more willing to listen to Archie than they were to him.

"Feeling a little left out?" Archive asked.

"More than a little. Grandpa Gold wiped my memories so I wouldn't remember that Regina was innocent until his plan was put into play. Even though I was the one to find you and figure everything out, they still send me out of the room. I can't even get anyone to tell me _why_."

Archie frowned and moved to take a seat next to him. "I've been talking with your dad."

"Did he tell you anything, because he sure won't tell me."

A thin smile stretched the elder man's lips. "From what I gather, Henry, your father and grandfather were trying to protect you from Cora. In their defense, she's _not_ a nice lady. I could see why they'd worry for you, and why your mother has gone to the lengths she has to make sure Cora won't catch us by surprise any more than she has. Regina is... She's really come quite a ways."

"But why didn't they trust me?"

"They do, Henry, but... Well, it sounds like it's very complicated."

Henry frowned. That's exactly what his dad had said. He hadn't wanted to explain anything until Grandpa Gold was there, but he was sleeping upstairs and no one knew how long it was going to be until he was well enough to get in the middle of all of this again.

"That's what adults say when they don't want to tell kids the truth," Henry pointed out.

Archie frowned. "And sometimes when they don't know the whole truth," he admitted softly. "Henry, I don't know the full story yet, but I do know that your parents love you and Regina seems to be making an incredible effort to make sure you're safe. Be patient and have faith. It'll come together."

Henry heaved a heavy sigh. "Okay."

The sound of the front door opening caused both of them to look towards the hallway and they could hear Emma and Mary Margaret speaking from the front of the house.

"Looks like it's time to get the story," Archie said with a smile.

"Yeah. And Archie?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm glad you're not dead."

The former cricket chuckled. "Thanks, Henry. Me too."

* * *

The first thing he noticed was that his house had far too many people in it. He couldn't quite hear the muffled voices downstairs from where he was lying in his bed in his own room, but he knew they were there. He could feel them moving about, his wards sending the information through even though they appeared to be no threat to him. Well, not much of a threat anyway. That must have been Emma.

Rumplestiltskin sat up slowly, feeling the aches of several days' worth of fever still working their way out of his muscles. He felt better, he had to admit, and truth be told he wasn't expecting to just yet. When he'd chosen to only take half the antidote he had had it planned out. It hadn't been the most convenient of plans, he had to admit, but he had weighed the risk of Cora deciding to use the foreign poison one someone he loved and had found the odds of her doing so far too high to risk not knowing what all was mixed into the antidote itself. His magic had been working the rest of the poison out slowly but surely, even if it had left him with bouts of weakness that had put Bae and Belle on edge. It had been for their own good. He was a selfish man, it was true, but he was willing to risk a few extra days of illness to ensure their safety. There were worse people he could selfishly protect.

The fact that he was able to sit up and stand, albeit slowly and leaning heavily on his cane, meant one thing: the antidote he'd set back for study had somehow been slipped to him. He only knew of two people that could be responsible, and they likely were.

Carefully Rumplestiltskin started for the door. He was hardly dressed in his usual business attire that they were accustomed to, but thankfully he wasn't in his pajamas either. He moved sluggishly though he could feel that the poison had finally vacated his system. He'd been under its influence for days, suppressing his own powers while they'd fought with it, but now he felt his magic rush through him, full and strong, and he straightened his shoulders. It was a glamour at this point, but it was more than enough. It was more than he'd managed in a while now.

His footsteps were as solid as they ever were as he descended the wooden stairs. The chatter grew louder the further he went down and he reached out with his magic, finding Belle, Bae, Henry, Emma, Snow, Charming, August, and the cricket - imagine that, apparently death didn't stick with him after all - in his home. Irritation flared up, but he crushed it down and behind a mask of utter calm as he rounded the corner, finding his visitors. No one seemed to notice at first, as Emma was raging on about something. "Well well," he tutted, gaining the attention immediately, "it does look like someone called a meeting. Too bad they forgot to tell the host."

Bae stepped around Emma, who looked to have been yelling at him before Rumplestiltskin had announced his presence. "Papa, you should be in bed."

"Should I? Seems I'm quite well."

"Gold," Emma hissed, cutting off any defence that Rumple's son might have given for his - and probably Belle's - actions. "What the hell did you do to my son?"

"To Henry?" Rumplestiltskin asked, eyes flickering over to the boy who was standing next to Archie. Ah. That meant that the memory binding spell had shattered. It must have been while he was asleep or he was sure he would have felt it. A slow smile crept to his lips. "As I told Regina, Henry's memories were set to return just when he needed them. Quite a surprise that Dr Hopper's sudden appearance was the key."

"We have to save my mom," Henry said, taking a step forward. "Please, Grandpa?"

Well wasn't he a budding manipulator? Rumplestiltskin felt some of his usual resolve crack under his grandson's plea, but he wouldn't let it shatter. "Henry, your mother is doing what she's doing to keep you safe."

"She's doing what she's doing because you forced her to," Emma snapped. "You made all of us believe that-"

"I did nothing of the sort, dearie. I _let_ you believe the lie that Cora spun, and that was done to keep Regina safe. This town spreads rumours faster than anything else and they all seem to start with the people in this room, with a few exceptions."

"What's going to happen if Cora finds out Regina is double-crossing her?" Charming asked, and Rumplestiltskin quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, I dare say she'll find out eventually, but I'd hoped to have everything in place by then."

"So you do have a plan?" Bae asked.

"In part. Regina's purpose of going in as she did was to find out what Cora wants. Unless the lot of you have made contact with her while I was asleep, no one knows that bit of information yet."

"But if we did, do we even know how to stop Cora?" Belle asked.

"We could trap and hold her," Snow offered.

"Yes, because that always works out well," Rumplestiltskin grumbled. "No, we need something a bit more permanent."

"You met her in your time, right?" Henry asked his dad. "How'd you guys beat her then?"

Bae frowned. "She died…. in a way that really shouldn't be repeated." His dark eyes flickered over to Rumplestiltskin's. "Something about a candle and Cora's heart…."

The Dark One nodded. "Oh yes, I can only imagine. Tell me, why wouldn't that be an option?"

"Because it devastated Regina," Bae argued.

"And she _is_ trying to help," Belle added.

Rumplestiltskin rolled his eyes. "Then let's just do away with anything that will make anyone sad in all of this, shall we? It's not like Regina hasn't been on board with killing her mother before."

"_Papa_," his son hissed at him.

"What? It's true, and _you_ were there for one time."

"On that note…. Henry, go wait upstairs," Emma said tightly.

"Upstairs? Why?"

She shot him a glare that sent him trudging down the hall, grumbling the whole way, and then the savior turned a much darker glare on her son's paternal grandfather. "So, let's _not_ discuss how my son's adoptive mother is cool with killing her own mother in front of him, okay?"

This was getting out of hand far too quickly. One of the many reasons Rumplestiltskin preferred to manipulate others into doing what he needed them to rather than trying to explain it to them. "Fine, but killing Cora will be our final option. Leaving her alive will only bring destruction down on everyone in Storybrooke, and mark my words, Miss Swan, Henry will be at the top of her list as soon as she realizes that Regina loves her boy more than she loves her mother."

_That_ got the savior's attention.

"She's only that way because she doesn't have a heart," Snow White mused sadly. "She _can't_ love Regina."

Bae perked. "What if she got it back? I mean, in my time, Regina was tricked into putting her mother's poised heart back into her chest and it killed her. What if she were to just put her heart back in… her normal heart?"

"Tricked?" Charming echoed, blue eyes sliding over to glare at Rumplestiltskin. "Wonder who could have done that?"

"That certainly sounds like a better option than killing her," Archie agreed, pulling the conversation back to the subject at hand and away from lobbed accusations.

"How would we get the message to Regina?" Belle asked.

"That's rather a moot point, my dear," Rumplestiltskin cut in and his love turned a questioning look on him. He shrugged. "Cora's a terrifying creature with or without her heart, so putting it back in her chest won't do anything."

"But she does love Regina, in a way," Snow pressed. "Or at least she _thinks_ she does. If she had her heart, she could truly love her. Maybe it's not too late for her. Maybe she can still have a second chance."

"I'd like to point out that Cora _chose_ to rip her own heart out," he tried again. These people were really very thick sometimes.

"If she could love Regina, though, Henry would be safe," Bae pointed out. "Isn't that what the end goal is anyway?"

"The end goal is to get rid of Cora," Rumplestiltskin snapped.

"Is it?" Archie asked and murmurs of agreement passed through the small crowd in Rumplestiltskin's home.

There would be no talking them out of this. He could see it in their eyes, and every one of those eyes was looking at him like they somehow needed or wanted his blessing for this doomed endeavour. Funny how they always wanted to use his ability to See the future when it suited them, and if those visions didn't suit… well, they'd take and pick until they found some that did. "It might keep Henry safe - for a time - but when she remembers why she tore her heart out to begin with it will be _worse_ the second time around."

"I've known Cora since I was a little girl," Snow said, her voice solomon. "She _can't_ be worse than what I've seen."

Rumplestiltskin snorted. "That, my dear, is simply a failure of imagination."

Belle reached her hand for his, her fingers lacing through his own. "Rumple, we have to at least try."

He frowned, but squeezed her hand. "I can't help you in this," he said softly, and the disappointment in her eyes cut like a knife, "but I won't stand in your way."

* * *

Knowing that they needed to find Regina and actually doing so were entirely different matters. The woman that had created Storybrooke knew the town better than anyone else possibly could and that made finding her nearly impossible if she didn't want to be found. The dwarfs had fanned out, keeping an eye open for Regina or Cora or even Hook if they saw him, but Neal had said that wasn't likely as long as the pirate thought he'd killed Gold. It had been everything that Emma could do to convince Henry that he didn't need to be a part of their search party. They weren't trying to spoil Regina's cover, just let her know that she wasn't alone in all of this.

They'd been out late into the night looking for her and Emma hadn't slept at all when they got back to pour over some maps of the town - the only help Gold had been willing to provide in all of this - in hopes of finding something that they hadn't found before. August had brought coffee ove, offering it as a sort of truce to help in the late hour. She knew he wanted to clear the air between them, but she just didn't have it in her. She was focused on finding Regina and setting things as straight as she could. She didn't want to think about the betrayals hidden for years or the fact that August had been trying to date her when it had been partially his fault that Neal had left all those years ago. Oh, he'd had a choice, certainly, but he wouldn't have gone anywhere without the persuasive sometimes-puppet's encouragement.

"Listen," August said hesitantly from his place across from her where he'd taken it on himself to look over one of the maps, "I know you're probably not happy with me right now-"

"Understatement. Your point?"

She could almost feel him flinch at her tone, but he pulled in a deep breath. "The point is I was trying to do what was right for you. Blue said-"

"I'll deal with her later, but you don't get to push it all it on her," Emma snapped, finally looking up at him. Her voice was tight and angry, coming out in more of a hiss than a yell only because her son was sleeping upstairs. "How can sending me off to prison have been _right_ for me? If Neal had been there, we would have kept Henry. Together. He would have had his family and I never would have-"

"Found yours," August whispered, stopping her even as her voice began to rise. "You never would have come to Storybrooke and you never would have broken the curse. These people _needed_ you, Emma. They needed you to chase after Henry and to set them free."

"You needed me to set _you_ free," Emma growled. "If you were really in it for everyone else, you'd have been there for me when I needed you, not just when you needed something from me. Did it ever occur to you that you could have had Neal convince me to go save everyone?"

"You would have thought he was crazy and he wouldn't have gone within five hundred miles of his dad. He was running, Emma, he-"

"You seriously underestimate him," the savior cut in. "And I did too because of you. Neal is a good guy. He's a good dad for Henry. If he'd known about him, he never would have left, but you knew that, didn't you?"

She watched him, hoping for some sign that she was wrong. Instead the guilt was written so plainly into his face that someone might as well have carved it there. She felt her heart sink. "And what?" she whispered. "Did you push him out of the way again because Blue told you to? What the hell could she have possibly offered you?"

"You _said_ you didn't have feelings for him anymore," August tried to argue, but even he seemed to know that it was worthless.

"Because you made sure I didn't know the whole story. If you'd told me, I could have made my decision. If you really cared at all, you'd have trusted me."

"I do care, Emma."

She snorted. "Funny way of showing it. Get out."

He paused as if he might try to argue again, but instead rose slowly to his feet and turned towards the door. "You asked what the Blue Fairy offered me. She offered me a chance to get back to my papa."

"Seems like you could have done that all on your own."

She turned her eyes back down to the map and refused to watch him go. The door clicked shut behind him as a voice sounded from the stairs. "Does this mean you and Dad are getting back together?"

Emma turned to look at Henry who was sitting on a step halfway down. He'd probably heard the whole thing. "I don't know, kid," she said honestly. "He came a long way for us, but I haven't been through what he has. It's going to take some getting used to."

"But you believe him?"

Emma thought about the images she'd seen playing through the dream catcher. "Yeah. I do, but we've got to handle Cora first."

Henry's smile was enough to banish any uncertainty and before she knew it he was next to her, wrapping thin arms around her neck. "It'll be okay," he promised. "Good always wins."

The kid said it with such confidence that Emma couldn't argue. She didn't even want to.

The knock that came at the door made Emma groan. "I swear that if that's August you better just head upstairs kid. You won't want to see what happens," she said as she pulled the door open. A very different face greeted her. "Regina?"

"Mom!" Henry cheered, and the mayor of Storybrooke barely had a chance to start her declaration of innocence when her adopted son wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "We know. I remember."

"Rumple released your memories?"

"I remembered as soon as we found Archie! I _knew_ something was wrong. You've changed too much to hurt someone innocent like him."

Regina smiled and hugged him back even as Emma hurried her into the apartment. "Listen, we've been brainstorming on how to handle your mom without killing her."

The dark haired woman quirked an eyebrow. "Henry, why don't you head upstairs. Emma and I need to speak about this."

"But we're not going to hurt her," Henry argued and Regina offered him a sad smile.

"Cora is very dangerous, Henry. Remember how hard Mr Gold and I worked to make sure she didn't come through the well? I _won't_ let her hurt you."

"Neal had an idea," Emma cut in. "He said in his... time... that Cora died because her heart was returned to her and had been poisoned. He wondered if simply returning her heart to her might be enough to keep her from hurting Henry."

Regina blinked at her. "I have no idea. My mother tore her heart out before I was born. I never knew why."

"Shouldn't we give her the chance to love you?" Henry asked with bright and hopeful eyes.

"We did all agree that it's worth a try if you're in for it," Emma said, watching her son's adopted mother's expression. It was carefully guarded for a moment, but slowly the mask began to slip.

"It certainly is," she said at last. I think I know just the distraction to use as well."

* * *

Cora had wanted to release the giant on Storybrooke at some point, so convincing her that the time was now was frighteningly easy. There would have been a day when Regina would have relished in the idea of watching these people squirm under the display of power over them, but this was different. This wasn't Regina the Evil Queen proving her dominance over the people she'd cursed, this was Regina, Henry's mother, who was trying desperately to find a way to handle the situation and keep her son safe.

"She'll be watching everything and won't find us?"

Regina glanced back at the woman that had quickly offered to help her. Snow White. She'd spent more years than not since meeting her step-daughter wishing for nothing less than her prolonged misery followed by a particularly gruesome death. Now, strangely enough, they were joining forces in hopes of both defeating and saving the woman that had put the wedge between them. "My mother likes to make sure everything happens the way that she wants it to. She won't be anywhere near the vault."

"But she'll really loose a giant on Storybrooke? What if-"

"Listen," Regina growled, turning an irritable glare on her, "if you don't want to come along for this, you shouldn't have invited yourself. I never asked you to come."

"Someone needs to help you. You can't do this alone."

"I'm perfectly capable to handling this myself," Regina snapped.

"But you shouldn't have to. Regina, no one should be without their mother. I know that I didn't go about it in the best way before, but if I can help you restore your relationship with her, I will. If there's even a hope of reconciliation between the two of you... You have to take it. "

There was a sadness in the younger woman's voice and Regina paused at the entrance to the vault through the graveyard. She'd known that Snow's mother had died when she was very young and that it had been her own actions that had forced Snow to give up Emma, pulling from her the chance to even _be_ a mother. Not that Regina could bring herself to regret that. Without the Dark Curse she would never have known Henry, and in the end, now, everything had to be for him. Baelfire might be willing to help her find a place in her son's heart, but she had to work for it herself. She had to earn it.

"I suppose you're right," she answered after a moment, some of the sharpness dulling a bit as the moved into the vault. She could feel the magic pulsing around them and the beating of hearts that she'd collected and the ones her mother had collected before her sounding in her ears.

"How do you keep them all straight?" Snow asked quietly.

Regina, in turn, didn't answer. The fact was that she didn't know who they all belonged to anymore. The important ones she knew, of course, but she didn't feel like a lecture today from her step-daughter on how each of those hearts belonged to someone once and that they were _all_ important. "Let's get mother's heart and be done with this before she realized we're here."

"Can she do that?" Snow asked curiously. "Just _know_?"

"Oh my dear girl," Cora's voice cooed from the darkness and Regina's hand froze against the box that held her heart. "Of course I can."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I hate to say this, but this is probably going to be a two-update sort of week. Prior commitments have my evenings pretty busy after work and I'd rather take my time and work through the chapters as they should be instead of just tossing one together because of the time restraint. So the next update should be Thursday.

Next time - Chapter Twenty: A Matter of the Heart, in which a giant mistakes David for James, Bae tries his hand at purposeful magic again, and Regina and Snow take on Cora.


	21. A Matter of the Heart

**Chapter Twenty: A Matter of the Heart**

David had always been a believer of using his wits as well as his sword and he'd never had trouble accepting a good diversion, but a giant was a bit much. Especially one that thought he was his twin brother that had, apparently, done a real number on him. He hadn't even had a chance to deny the accusation or to find out what happened before the full-sized giant started his rampage through the streets of Storybrooke.

Another angry scream came from him and he slammed a foot down on the street, buckling pavement and nearly throwing David from his feet. He would have tumbled had a hand not reached out to steady him, and David was suddenly much happier that Baelfire had offered to come with him on this route instead of accompanying Emma and Leroy to get people rounded up into safety. Snow usually would have come with him, but she was off with Regina now to put an end - hopefully - to the whole Cora fiasco. As much as he liked a good adventure, he wouldn't mind a few moments to breathe at this point.

"What the hell did you do to him?" Rumplestiltskin's son asked as they dodged a fairly well-aimed car lobbed in their direction.

David grimaced. "He called me James. That's my brother's name."

"You have a brother?"

"Did. A twin. He died. He was-" The explanation paused as the two men threw themselves in opposite directions, a stoplight aimed to take off a head and more crashing down where they had been. The prince rolled, coming up to his feet just in time to dodge again. They'd been leading him steadily further and further away from where the people were, but they could only go so far without hitting the town line. Briefly, David wondered if this giant - whose name he had never caught - would be able to cross it. He wasn't under the Dark Curse, but he would certainly be considered a magical creature by the Land Without Magic. The musings were cut short though as the ground shook dangerously, threatening to cave altogether beneath their feet.

"Did you notice how scarce August has been for this fun little outing?" Bae chuckled as he pulled himself up from where he'd hit his knees hard. While the giant hadn't been aiming for him specifically, he'd caught a fair amount of the attacks that had been thrown towards David.

"Emma didn't tell you?" David asked, blinking owlishly at him. "She sent him away last night. From what it sounded like, she made it pretty clear that she didn't want to see him again."

Bae stopped where he was. "Seriously? I'll be damned."

David grinned even as the giant made a swipe for him. He stumbled back and the second grab connected, pulling him fully off his feet and into the air. His arms were pinned to his side and no matter how hard he struggled, the giant's fingers wouldn't loosen. "Now you'll pay, James, for all the suffering you caused!" he growled.

"I'm not James," David argued. "He was my twin brother, raised by a tyrant. I'm sorry for whatever pain he may have caused you, but he's not me."

"Liar!" The giant roared. "You won't trick me again!"

The fingers around him began the squeeze tighter and David found it difficult to breath. He winced, unable to work his way out. He had to think. Snow would know just what to say to calm the giant down, but she wasn't here. Emma might be able to help to, with her new experience with… That was it! Giants were meant to be extinct all except one, and this must be it, so this must have been the same giant that Emma had met in the Enchanted forest. "Listen," David gasped out, "you know my daughter Emma. You… you helped her get the magic compass that got her… home to us."

The giant glared. "I don't see her here. Where is she?"

"She's helping to get people out of danger," Bae said from the ground, "but I can get ahold of her."

David craned his neck around just enough to see Baelfire digging his phone out of his pocket, showing his other was empty and harmless. He was wearing a grin that must have been used to put most people at ease, and even the giant seemed to be affected by it as his grip loosened and the prince felt the air rush back into his lungs. He took advantage of it it in several deep gasps, the seconds ticking by, feeling more like hours.

"Well?" the giant demanded.

"There were a lot of scared people in town and Emma's job is to make sure they're safe," Bae said carefully, his voice as light as he could manage. "She's doing that, but she'll be here as soon as she's done."

"You can talk to her through that? Let me see it?"

"She's… kind of not answering, but she will. I'll leave her a message and she'll get it. She'll come straight here."

David let out a startled cry as the pressure returned and the hand around him squeezed tightly against bones threatening to give. "How convenient," the giant growled. "Seems like the only one out of you people I would actually trust isn't around. All you humans do is lie and cheat and kill! I'm sick of it!"

Bae met David's pained look with one of suppressed fear and the prince could almost see the shorter man's clever mind working. "Oh hell," he breathed and looked like he was concentrating on something as hard as he could, reaching a hand out and slowly his fingers began to tinge a light blue, magic gathering there.

"What are you doing?" the giant demanded as the magic leapt from Baelfire's hands, wrapping around him and holding him in place. "Let me go!"

"Only if you promise… to put him down," Bae managed, his voice tight with the stress the focused - but untrained - magic was putting on him.

"He killed my family!"

"Did you hear him? He-" The Dark One's son let out a sharp cry and dropped suddenly to his knees, blood trickling from his nose and the magic immediately dissipated.

"You're all alike," the giant growled as he threw David as if he'd been nothing more than a doll in the hands of a child. "You're all liars!"

David landed hard, rolling as he hit the broken street and the last conscious thought to sweep through his mind was that he hoped Emma could calm the giant before he hurt anyone else.

* * *

"If you're so nervous, why don't you go help them?" Belle asked sensibly. Her love was obviously feeling better as he was pacing back and forth the length of the sitting room, cane tapping against the floor every other step in an increasingly quick pattern. He seemed to be trying to ignore her as she watched him from her place on the sofa, book in her lap and legs curled up under her. Her words didn't help at all as he loosed a snarling growl that was reminiscent of some of his more volatile tempers back in the Enchanted Forest.

"I _tried_, or didn't you hear? They won't listen to reason."

Belle pulled in a deep breath and let it out slowly through her nose. She loved him, but sometimes wondered if he would ever learn to trust those around him. This had been Baelfire's idea, giving it the greatest possibility for acceptance, but he'd refused to budge, no matter how many times she asked.

She set her book aside, uncurled her legs, and stood, catching him as he tried to make his way past her again. "You're going to wear a hole in the floor," she told him firmly as she had to tighten her grip to keep him from brushing past her again.

"It's my floor," he responded childishly and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

Instead, she tipped up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips, effectively silencing any further protests. He relaxed just a bit as she wrapped her arms around his neck and finally pulled back just enough to speak quietly. "You're worried."

"Yes," he admitted softly as she worked her hands through his hair, still up on her toes so that she could kiss him at a moment's notice. Her presences seemed to relax him and he closed his eyes, breath leaving him in a huffing sound, but it was better than what it had been. Rumplestiltskin, as long as she had known him, had always had a temper that was fueled by worry. Fear and a lack of control always made it worse, sending him spiralling into these fits. Admitting it was new though, and Belle had noticed that in more recent times. She wasn't sure if it was due to Bae showing up or if Rumple might be more isolated from the more demanding parts of his curse in the Land Without Magic. She wasn't complaining, whichever scenario was at the root of it. It at least allowed him to speak a little more sensibly about things, even if it took some work at it.

"I've never known you to sit idly by."

"You heard them, Belle. They won't listen. They don't know her like I do."

Belle tilted her head in question. "Who is she then? I know that she is Regina's mother, but who is she to you?"

Rumplestiltskin froze at that question, his dark brown eyes opening wide and he stared at her. She sank back down so that her bare feet were pressed flat against the wooden floor, surprise pulling her back. So many emotions were raging through those eyes that she couldn't quite pick them out. Fear, hatred, betrayal, and so much more. They flashed, one right after the other and before she knew it he'd taken a physical step back from her. "She was my first student."

_That_ was interesting, and certainly not what Belle had expected. She knew Rumple had lived several centuries, so the fact that Cora was his first seemed rather odd to her. She'd assumed that he'd taken on many students over the years as the whim caught hold of him. Perhaps not.

"I knew her daughter was important for the curse," he explained softly. "When I met her, she was about to die at the hands of a king."

"You saved her?"

"Because I needed her."

"And you… taught her to be like she is?"

He shrugged, and turned a little more away from her. She hated when he started out like this. The temper may have been dampened somewhere, but the fear and the certainty that those he loved would leave him seemed to cling to the front of his thoughts at all times. "The darkest sides of my curse enjoyed teaching Cora," he said after a moment. "She was vengeful and terrible."

Belle sighed and closed the gap between them. He wanted to say more, she could hear it in his voice, but he'd stopped himself. Every conversation they'd had recently about trust came to mind, but she repeated the words to herself as well. She had faith in Rumple and she would continue to have faith in him. He needed her to as much as she did.

A buzzing sound came from inside Rumplestiltskin's pocket and he fished out the cell phone and flipped it open, relief at the end of the conversation about Cora only flashing briefly. "Bae? What's the matter, son?" His brows knit together as Bae spoke to him, his voice muffled and impossible for Belle to completely understand. She didn't need to, though, because Rumple began to speak again. "I'm sorry, but did you say giant? In Storybrooke?"

The librarian's eyes widened and her mind started to pull together everything she knew about giants. They were thought to be extinct until just a few years before the curse swept them all away. A legend had been on its way to forming already when they left and it spoke if one giant: the most terrible of them all. Supposedly he was very jealous of his treasure and had a deep seated disdain for any human that crossed his path.

"What are you doing?"

Belle stopped her search she'd begun and looked over at her love. She hadn't even heard him hang up the phone. "Looking for my shoes."

"What?"

She shot him a withering look. "My shoes. I can hardly come with you to battle a giant barefoot, can I?"

"What makes you think I'm going?" he asked, his voice soft and guarded.

She smiled at him, finding her shoes where she'd kicked them off on the other side of the sofa. "Because it's Bae."

"And why should that mean that you need to go?"

Belle pushed down the irritation the words brought on, clinging to the knowledge that Rumplestiltskin was a tad overprotective of those he loved most. The smile remained and she crossed the space between them. "For all of your cleverness you can be very dull sometimes," she informed him and pressed a kiss to his lips. "You don't have to face anything alone anymore."

* * *

If he had his way, those that he loved would never be in danger. There'd been a day when the Dark One _always_ had his way too, but now they were actually in his life and he found himself bending to their wishes and wants more than he ever would have before. He didn't have time to argue with Belle about her safety and he knew that look in her eye as well. If he simply left her behind it would cause more than a small rift. She was a patient woman, but patience only took one so far.

That was why he took her when he transported himself instantly to the place Bae had called him from. He hadn't liked the sound of his voice over the phone, and when he laid eyes on his son, he knew why. The giant he'd spoken of loomed dangerously close to where Bae was knelt on the pavement, the concrete broken all around him and he was staring up. David lay motionless just a few yards away.

"It's an actual giant," Belle breathed. "I've only read about them. They were once thought to be quite gentle creatures unless provoked."

"I'd say this one has been provoked," Rumplestiltskin groused and took a step forward. His magic obeyed even the mere thought he offered up to it and the giant shimmered, frozen even as he was reaching for the injured prince just beyond Bae.

Baelfire turned and made his way unsteadily to his feet. "Papa! You came."

"Of course I did," his father answered testily. "Are you alright?"

"Me? Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, though his tone hardly bred confidence.

"I'll check on David," Belle offered softly and Rumple moved to meet his son, even as the giant began to yell.

"You magic users! You think you can use anyone you want to do anything you want! You're the worst of them all. You and that witch and-"

"That's quite enough, thank you," Rumplestiltskin cut him off, his magic slapping against the giant's mouth like a gag. "We'll deal with you later. Bae, what happened, son?"

Baelfire quirked an uncomfortable smile and wiped at his nose. If he'd been meaning to do away with the evidence before his father saw it, he only brought attention to it and the elder man grabbed his hand, inspecting the blood on it and he put a hand on either side of his face, leaning in to study him. Bae stiffened in his grip, but didn't pull away. "He was going to kill David," he said after a moment as his papa's magic moved all around him, exploring and checking for unseen damage. "I had to try something."

"Yes, that does seem to be the motto of the last few days. _Let's try something_," Rumplestiltskin said flippantly, his voice pitching up in a mocking tone that pulled a frown from his son.

Bae moved from his grasp. "I couldn't just let him die."

"So you decided to try your hand at magic you can't control."

"It's not my fault you haven't taught me anything!"

"Forgive me for fighting for my life the last few days, Baelfire."

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"Interesting, that's about what you said."

"_Enough_, both of you," Belle called out from her place. "Could you please handle this when we _don't_ have a giant trapped in place?"

Rumplestiltskin snorted, but didn't argue with her. Instead he turned his gaze up to his frozen captive. "Now what are you doing here?" He waited for a response before remembering that he'd gagged the destructive giant and with a wave of his hand he released him.

"If you think I'm answering any of your-"

"Now now," the Dark One tutted, his gag falling back into place temporarily, "no need to yell. We're all right here, dearie. I'm going to release this in a moment and you are going to behave. That, or I'll make you wish that you'd never sided with Cora."

The giant made a muffled, frustrated sound that finally turned into words. "I never sided with that witch! She brought me here. All I wanted was to live in peace!"

Rumplestiltskin snorted and his son took a steadier step towards him. "Emma knows him, Pop, but we can't get ahold of her."

"Glad you didn't try to use magic to pull her here," his papa groused. "Might have left half of her there."

"Half of who?" David asked in a slurred voice and Rumple glanced over to see him leaning heavily on Belle, still looking a bit woozy from the attack.

"Nothing, nothing," the Dark One growled and waved his hand.

Magic swirled in blacks and reds, depositing a very startled looking Emma Swan when it cleared. She swayed, unsteady in the new place and looked around. "What the hell?" she demanded, hazel eyes traveling the small group, and just as she looked like she was about to push for an answer from Rumplestiltskin, she spotted the giant. "Anton?"

"Emma!" their very large and destructive visitor cried, the first semi-pleasant expression they'd seen making it onto his features. "These people say they know you. James here-"

"James?" the savior echoed, following where he was pointing with his eyes - Rumplestiltskin hadn't released his holding spell yet - and gawked. "That's not James. That's David. He's… Well, he's my dad."

"He is?" Anton asked.

"Yeah. You mind not destroying our town?"

"If it's your town, it's safe from me."

Rumplestiltskin tilted his head, judging how honest he felt the statement was and finally let his spell drop. He turned his back as Emma - and David, though he moved much more slowly and looked to be in some amount of pain - spoke with Anton. Belle looped her arm through his own and he could tell she was trying to calm him. She knew that the calm expression he wore now was a facade. Beneath it fear and dread battled each other to claw to the top of the piling anxiety that finding his son on his knees with signs of magical strain radiating from him had brought on. She may not have known why the anxiety had built, but she knew it was there.

"Papa," Bae said softly and Rumplestiltskin loosed a breath through his nose.

"What you did was dangerous, Bae."

"I was just trying to hold him. Just like you did."

"Look at the size of him. Bae, you're smarter than that…"

"Rumple," Belle's soft voice reached his ear and she squeezed his arm. "He was trying to help. Don't be cross with him."

"He's not," Baelfire said softly, as if it had suddenly become clear to him. "He's scared."

Rumplestiltskin stiffened. "Bae-"

"It's not a knock, Papa. It's…" He pulled in a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I was just trying to help. I didn't mean to frighten you."

There was such honesty in his son's voice that he felt his chest tighten. Before he could talk himself out of it he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Baelfire, pulling him close. "I love you, Bae," he whispered roughly and the younger man returned the embrace. "I just want you to be safe, son."

"I know, Papa. I know. I love you too."

Charming cleared his throat off to the side. "So, Gold, I take it we have your help in this?"

Rumplestiltskin snorted. "I fear there's no stopping it now."

* * *

Regina stood frozen where she was, her eyes wide. A spell had washed over her, keeping her from moving even a centimeter one way or the other. Her mother had moved faster than she could have ever dreamt of moving. For all Regina's skill, for all of her natural and trained talent, she was nothing compared to Cora. Every step she'd taken against her had been thwarted and every move she'd made that she thought had been in secret had been known. She knew, just as Cora did, that she was beaten.

"This is a turn of events," the Queen of Hearts purred. "To see you two working closely together almost reminds me of your childhood, Snow. Though it never seems to work out well for you, does it sweetheart? Perhaps trusting Eva's daughter was never in your best interest after all."

"Mother, release me," Regina said tightly.

"I really don't think I will," Cora answered with a terrible smile. She moved towards Snow, her hand coming up to the younger woman's face. The princess remained calm, her glare even, and she didn't flinch as Cora took hold of her chin and spoke to her daughter, even though she was facing her step-granddaughter. "I worked so hard to make sure you had the life I didn't, Regina. So very hard. When I married your father, I knew he'd never be king. I would never be queen, but you, dear… You had so much potential." She tilted Snow's head, studying her face carefully. "I killed Eva because I knew Leopold well enough to know he'd search for a new wife. His darling child needed a mother, and who better than my own daughter for that role?"

For the first time since she'd moved towards her, Snow spoke softly, her voice quivering, though Regina didn't know if it were from anger or shock. "You killed my mother?"

Cora smiled cruelly. "I did, and Regina filled that role quite nicely, don't you think?"

"You're a monster," Snow hissed.

"No dear. I'm a mother. I'm willing to do anything for my child. I have, and I will continue, even if she's lost sight of her goal."

Regina focused on the spell surrounding her. Rumple had always taught her that there was no spell cast by human hand that couldn't be unravelled. There was a loose thread, and though she had never been one to take the time to carefully unravel a spell - the Evil Queen had always relied on power over finesse - she struggled to remember the training he'd tried to provide her with now. Carefully, as subtly as she knew how, she worked her way through the holding spell until she found what has looking for. One single string. It was the end of the spell, tucked into the folds and hidden well from plain sight. Only a skilled magic user would have found it and only a truly talented one could take a hold of it.

The first attempt to pull it slipped, and if Cora had been any less distracted by the daughter of her former rival she would have certainly noticed, but her eyes were on Snow and her back was towards her daughter. She always had been caught up in power and it could be used against her. The second try was the one and Regina tugged hard, unravelling the spell and feeling rushed back into her fingers.

Cora spun, feeling her spell shatter, but Regina already had the heart in her hand. She moved faster than her mother would have ever given her credit for and the world seemed to stand still as she shoved her heart back into her chest.

* * *

TBC

Next time - Chapter Twenty-One: Between a Truth and a Lie, in which Snow asks questions, Cora discovers Belle, and Rumplestiltskin lets his fears drive his decisions.


	22. Between a Truth and a Lie

**Chapter Twenty-One: Between a Truth and a Lie**

Rumplestiltskin had warned them. He'd said that they couldn't possibly know what they were doing in trying to save her, but they hadn't listened. How could saving a life be wrong? Everyone deserved a second chance in life, and this was Cora's. It was Cora's chance to love her daughter and to accept her adopted grandson. It was her chance to choose to be _good_. Snow white had lived her life believing in second chances - often thirds, fourths, and fifths in many cases - and when it came to forgiveness, there should be no exception, no matter how painful the slight. After all, she had been willing to forgive Regina for her father's murder and the essential banishment that she'd suffered under her rule.

Now, though, as their plan came to fruition, Snow felt that their hopes might be just beyond reach, and she couldn't quite grasp as to why that hope was slipping. Cora and Regina stood frozen in place, their eyes fixated on one another. Regina might have returned her mother's heart to her, but even that could not wipe away the vicious confession Cora had dropped on Snow just then. Her mother was dead and it was Cora's fault. She had murdered one of the sweetest, most innocent souls in the worlds and the fact that it had happened so very long ago did nothing to ease the blow. At least Regina had had reasons, as screwed as those reasons had been. Cora was just _evil_.

"Mother?" Regina whispered hesitantly. There was no guarantee that returning this woman's heart to her would make a damn bit of difference.

"Regina," Cora breathed. "My dear, you've-"

"How do you feel, Mother?"

Cora paused, almost as if she weren't quite sure. Snow took a step forward, ready to defend her unlikely ally if it came to that, but the elder woman hadn't made an aggressive move since her heart had been placed back in her chest. In fact, she hadn't really moved at all. Slowly she raised a hand and Snow White stiffened, but the Queen of Hearts rested the palm of her hand against Regina's cheek. "You've given me my heart back," she whispered.

Regina beamed. "How do you feel?"

"If I'd only known... My dearest girl, I've caused you so much pain."

Snow watched as Regina's expression melted into one she hadn't seen in many, many years. Perhaps not since Daniel had died. True joy took over and the two women embraced, Cora's voice barely audible. "This... If I'd only known, I would have put it back in years ago."

"If you'd known what, Mother?"

"That this could be enough."

* * *

Magic was still a fairly strange concept to her, no matter how much of it she had seen. She'd grown up believing little beyond what she could see with her own two eyes and touch with her own two hands. The people that she called family now may have seen Happy Endings and True Love, but Emma Swan was certain she'd never experienced such a thing as either one - thought Henry seemed pretty convinced that she'd experienced at least the second one and had brought back the ability to reach the first - as they were always chasing after the next big problem and fighting the next looming threat. There was no end to it, and maybe that was just the price to being the savior, but in the end, it still left her a little more hesitant to dive straight into the whole magic bit.

But then there were times when she was dragged kicking and screaming. It stood to reason that Gold would be the one to do the pulling. It was just about typical. Though once she'd managed to quell the threat from an angry giant, apparently her usefulness subsided as well. David - still a little unsteady on his feet and holding his left arm close to him after apparently being tossed around like a rag doll - had cornered Gold and it sounded like he was asking if there was a way to put the street back together. Gold didn't look particularly amused.

"This is not going to end well," Neal said and Emma couldn't help but seeing the funny trend of him just popping up at her side.

"Is my dad asking your dad to play road repair guy?"

"Pretty sure that's what's happening there."

"Yeah, that's not going to end well."

"I'm not a construction worker," Gold snapped, his voice tight and irritable. He certainly looked better than he had before though. In the open air it was easier to see that the lines in his face had eased a little and he was put together, unlike when she'd seen him just the evening before. Though being well obviously didn't put him in any finer of a mood.

"I'm not-" David's flustered argument died as magic swirled around the giant that had been quietly listening to everything, shrinking Anton back to a more manageable size.

Emma looked around, trying to find the source. At first she didn't see anything and thought maybe he had just hit the end of the spell that had been cast on him, but the source of the magic was walking towards them, one hand stretched and her chin held high. Cora stood dressed as she had been in the Enchanted Forest and the savior of Storybrooke had her gun out and aimed. "Put your hands where I can see them and don't even _think_ about casting any more magic."

"Who is that?" Belle asked, her clear blue eyes focused on the woman in question.

Cora raised her hands, palms outward in surrender. "I'm not here to hurt you, dear."

"She's not," Regina said, and Emma turned to look at her, not willing to put her gun away yet. "It worked."

Emma's hazel gaze shifted over to her mother who looked much less sure than the mayor of Storybrooke. "Mary Margaret?"

"It seems to have worked," she said slowly, but there was something in her voice that Emma wasn't comfortable with. She watched them for a moment, looking for any signs that Cora was forcing their hand. She'd seen the witch control Aurora by taking her heart. Could she have done that to either Mary Margaret or Regina? Maybe even both? Her gaze shifted over to Gold who appeared as distrustful as she felt.

"That's usually when you put the gun down, Emma," Neal said quietly in her ear. "It worked."

The blonde frowned. "Regina, could I have a sec?"

Her son's adopted mother hesitated a moment, but Cora put a hand on her arm, leaning closer and whispering something in her ear. The younger woman's face lit up at the words and she moved towards Emma, doing nothing to ease the worry. She stopped when she reached her, and the usual hostility - even the much lighter version she'd retained for he savior since she'd started down the path of trying to earn Henry - was completely put away. "Yes?"

"She doesn't have your heart or something does she?" Emma asked bluntly.

Regina blinked at her. "Even if she did she wouldn't be able to control me with it. I'm not a fool, Miss Swan."

_There_ was a bit of the spark from the Regina she knew. That made her feel a little better at least. "I know, but I'm sure we can both agree we want to make sure you mother is being 100% honest before we just let her loose on the town." She paused, watching her former enemy's defences go up before she added, "Or near Henry."

That gained her attention. "Of course I wouldn't let her anywhere near Henry of I thought it hadn't worked," she snapped.

"You're a bit close to it," Emma pointed out. "Listen, I'm just saying-"

"It was your boyfriend's idea to do this. I would have thought you were in board."

"I am. If it works. I'm just saying that two minutes of playing nice after returning her heart doesn't prove anything."

Regina glared. "You might want to watch yourself, dear. You starting to sound as cynical about my mother as Rumple."

"I'm thinking of Henry."

"I'm sure you are. Just like you thought of him the first ten years of his life. Tell me, Miss Swan, how often did he cross your mind?"

Emma felt her defences go up. She'd been trying to bring Regina back around but had only managed to strike a nerve.

Regina let out a strained breath, her shoulders still back, but at least she seemed to be trying to put a lid on her temper. "Henry wants his family. I've never been able to give him that, but if my mother can actually be a mother, if she can actually love, why should we deny Henry his grandmother?"

"Just... be careful," Emma murmured. "I saw what she was capable of in the Enchanted Forest."

The older woman nodded carefully, but didn't seem to risk her voice. Emma didn't push it. Neal had told her enough - and she'd seen enough from his memories - to know that Regina with them was much better for everyone. She wouldn't be the one to turn her against them. One look in Mary Margaret's direction showed that her mother was thinking along the same lines. They had to tread carefully here or things might turn out worse than they would have before.

* * *

Cora was much different than Belle had expected. She wasn't sure why, but she'd thought she would meet a younger woman, or at least that was the image that her mind had worked up for her. It was something in Rumple's voice when he spoke about her. He certainly wasn't aware of it, but Belle knew her love better than he would like at times. It was that something that had conjured up the image of a beautiful and powerful woman that might have once caught the Dark One's attention for something more than her daughter's future purpose. The woman that stood before them now was beautiful and even Belle could feel the power radiating off of her, but somehow the image of Cora in her mind was of a woman untouched by mortality.

Cora's eyes followed her daughter as Emma called her over, both of Henry's mothers speaking quietly with each other. Slowly, when it became evident that she would not be asked to join, her dark eyes swept over the rest of them until they came to rest on Rumple. A slow smile perked her lips, growing as she continued to watch him and Belle saw her love stiffen very slightly. "Rumple," Cora nearly purred, "so glad to see you back on your feet. I do hope there are no lasting effects. I would be devastated if I knew my little visit had caused you too much harm."

Her eyes lingered on the cane that Rumplestiltskin was leaning on and he frowned. "I'd hardly given your visit a second thought, dearie."

Her smile only widened. "Oh Rumple. We both know that's not true." She watched him for a moment and Belle - who considered herself fairly adept at reading people - had difficulty deciding if her gaze was more predatory or if it was that was a warped fondness shining through there. "Something _is_ different though," the Queen of Hearts said thoughtfully and her eyes flickered over to Belle. Rumple took a step to the side, positioning himself between the two women and Cora laughed. "This little flower? Oh, Rumple, that is... She's a child."

"I've been alive over three centuries, Cora. You're _all_ children," Rumplestiltskin said, his voice even. Belle recognized the danger there, though, and from the way she shifted, so did Cora.

"Rumple," Belle said softly, reaching for his arm. Her fingers touched the material of his coat and he moved just a bit more in front of her.

"She doesn't use magic, does she?" Cora asked, her tone curious. "What do you see in her?"

"What I see in her is none of your concern, Cora. You _will_ let her be, do you understand?"

Cora smiled sweetly. "I wouldn't dream of harming her, Rumple. Didn't you hear Regina's splendid news? I have my heart again. Things will be very different this time."

"You forget, dearie, I knew you when you had it the last time. I didn't see a great deal of difference in you when you ripped it out."

"I know I hurt you, Rumple, but I'd like to make amends."

She didn't sound like she wanted to make amends, Belle thought. She sounded like she wanted to destroy anything that stepped in her way, and right now, she was in Cora's way. She squared her shoulders behind Rumple, her fingers tightening on his arm so that he wasn't started when she stepped up to his side. She didn't say anything - she didn't know enough of the story to risk jumping too much in the middle of it - but she could prove that she was more than the trembling, frightened child Cora seemed to see. She was strong and when she wasn't brave, she at least tried to choose to do the brave thing. Rumple had told her those were things he loved about her and she wouldn't cower behind him now, no matter how powerful the witch might be.

Cora chuckled at the movement and Rumplestiltskin turned back briefly. "Bae?"

Bae, who had been watching everything carefully, stepped forward. "Yeah, Papa?"

"We're leaving."

Belle glanced over to her love's son. She knew that those decisions born out of the need to take control if the situation were the ones that irked Baelfire the most. She couldn't say that she blamed him, but they both knew his papa had been pushed to a snapping point that morning. She caught Bae's eyes and did her best to silently plead. He could fuss all he wanted when they were gone, but if they didn't go now, any hopes of bringing Cora out of their threat category would be utterly destroyed when he lashed out at her.

Bae turned to Emma and she offered a strained smile. "I think we have this if you need to be somewhere."

He nodded slowly. "Call if you need me."

"Will do."

Rumple didn't let another moment pass before they were swept up and carried away by his magic, deposited safely behind the wards in his home.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had become very accustomed to his control over the years. He could manipulate most any situation into something useful, but Cora had always proven to be the dangerous spark that could set an explosion rocking even his best laid plans off kilter. After accepting the antidote, he'd hoped she would have distracted herself with anything other than his family. Knowing that Bae was in Storybrooke was bad enough, but now she'd seen Belle too. He could almost feel the situation spiraling out of control and this was what he'd feared the most when the idea had been put forward. Cora without her heart was a living nightmare, but one that could be dealt with. Cora _with_ her heart was an entirely different story. She would still be vicious and power hungry, but she would feel all those driving factors she'd spent so many years avoiding, and if that weren't dangerous enough, now those idiots that were so determined to lob everyone into their perfect little categories would want to redeem her, putting Rumplestiltskin into quite a bind when it came to protecting his family.

"Anything you want to say, Pop?" Bae asked tightly and Rumple knew what his son wanted from him. He wanted the same thing as Belle did: answers. The problem was that he wasn't quite ready to dive into those memories just yet. He'd done what he could to leave them behind long ago and he preferred they stay there. It did them nothing to dredge them up if the warnings wouldn't be listened to anyway.

At this point he wanted nothing more than to protect them, but one look at his son told him that he wouldn't put up with being locked in the house for his own safety. Bae wasn't a child anymore, but that didn't mean that Rumplestiltskin had to leave his protection to chance. "You said you wanted me to train you in magic."

Bae gaped at him, obviously not expecting that. "Now?"

"I'd prefer it to be _before_ Cora decides you're a threat to her, yes," his father answered tightly.

"Perhaps it's time to tell us why she would," Belle said carefully.

"It doesn't matter."

"It does."

She stepped closer to him and Rumplestiltskin felt like the walls were closing on around him. She didn't _really_ want to know who Cora was. Surely she didn't.

"I'm not a fool, Rumple. I hear how you speak about her, the way she looks at you. I know she was more than just your student."

"What are you asking me, Belle?" he managed, his throat dry.

"Do you still love her?"

That hadn't been the question he'd expected to be asked outright. Danced around, perhaps, but he wasn't prepared to answer a straightforward question like that. He stared at her a moment, his mind whirling through half-truths he'd told himself and the lies he spoke aloud. Twice he opened his mouth and then closed it again, no words actually spoken. He didn't know. He hated Cora, it was true. He hated her enough that he was willing to do what it took to keep her away from Storybrooke and his family. But he had loved Cora once, and it was that lingering bit of feeling, irrational and self-destructive though it was, that made him pause just long enough for her to to loose a breath that bordered on irritable.

"I'm not a fool for you to move around on your chessboard like a pawn, Rumple," Belle said, her voice shaking very slightly and she leveled a glare at him. "I'm not a child."

Panic set in at Cora's echoed words. "I don't-" he started, reaching for her, but she pulled away, her smile put on and sad at the corners.

"You never trust me when you think I won't like the answer."

With that she turned, stalking towards the door and it slammed shut behind her, rattling the walls in its force. He hadn't meant to let her go, but even as she stormed away he reminded himself that it had been inevitable. He'd tried to warn her, afterall. He was a monster, a beast, and a difficult man to love. Above that, though, he didn't know quite how to love people in the way they needed to be loved. He'd always known something he did would make her walk out that door, he'd just never suspected it would be Cora.

* * *

"Well that could have gone better."

The heartbroken expression that his papa wore made Bae instantly regret the words. Rumplestiltskin could be an utter fool for all his intelligence, and he often tunnel visioned on something to the point that it kept him from seeing the obvious things that were staring him right in the face. Things like the fact that Belle likely wasn't walking out on him as much as she was just frustrated beyond the boiling point. She'd asked him again and again to trust her, and every time Rumplestiltskin would promise to try. It was only a matter of time before she lost her cool. Honestly, Bae was impressed it hadn't been sooner.

That wouldn't help his father right now though, so he reached out, touching his arm and gaining his attention. "What'd you say about training?"

Rumplestiltskin shot him a look that said he thought his son had lost his mind.

Baelfire shrugged. "If you go after her right now she'll just yell at you."

"I'm not going after her," his papa said quietly. "She deserves better."

The younger man rolled his eyes. "Dramatic, Pop. You pushed her too far this time. She loves you, so she'll come back, but you better have a damn good apology ready when she does. You know she deserves an answer."

"I don't see the point, Bae," he murmured sadly. "She'll leave either way. You and I both know she deserves better than me. It was only a matter of time till she saw it."

Bae sighed. It was rare to hear his papa speak like this these days. Land Without Magic or not, his curse kept him at least somewhat detached from most people. It was the only way he could have cast a curse like he had or used people like he still did. Bae had felt absolutely ill in the short time that Henry's memories had been bound. He knew what it was that allowed Rumplestiltskin to deal with people in the manner that he did, but there were a select few that could still break his dark heart into pieces and leave a gaping wound in its place. Bae reminded himself of that as he spoke, his voice more gentle than before. "You still have feelings for Cora. That was obvious from the moment you started talking about her, but that doesn't mean you'd _choose_ her."

Pained dark eyes flickered towards him. "What do you mean?"

"Do you think Emma's been the only girl I've ever had feelings for? Some, if I ever ran across them again, I'd still have feelings for, but if I had to choose Emma would win every time. Hands down, no question. If it were Belle or Cora, would it even be a competition?"

"Of course not."

"Then there you have it. _That's_ what she needs to hear. That, and probably what happened between you and Cora."

"Belle knows there's no question between them."

"Does she? You haven't told her."

"I shouldn't have to. She's… Well she's Belle. There will never be anyone like her."

Bae let out a slow breath, watching his papa carefully. As much as he had changed under his curse and through the centuries, there were still glimpses of the spinner that never thought he would amount to anything, especially next to the woman he loved.

"Just because you know that doesn't mean she does," Bae said quietly.

Rumplestiltskin blinked. "You think that Belle believes I would choose Cora over her?"

Bae quirked an eyebrow and watched his father's shoulders sag. "Give her a little bit to cool down and tell her. Then be honest with her about this. That's the best way to win her back, and Papa, you _can't_ let her go."

"I don't want her to," he confessed softly.

"Then hold onto her. Anyway, she's good for you."

A small smile perked his papa's thin lips and pulled a wide one from him. "I suppose you're right."

"'course I am," Baelfire answered with a grin and slung an arm around his father's shoulders. "So, what are you going to teach me to protect myself from Cora so you don't have a panic attack?"

"I'm not having a panic attack," Rumplestiltskin countered immediately, his tone offended at the notion and his son laughed at him.

"Sure, Papa," he answered with a grin and his father snorted, shaking his head. Neither of them would win that one and they both knew it, but it was good to see him smiling. He and Belle would be fine. It might just be a bit of Henry rubbing off on him, but Bae had no question that the woman his papa loved was his True Love and even if Rumplestiltskin didn't know it yet, she made him stronger than he could have ever imagined himself to be.

* * *

Belle considered herself a fairly patient person. She'd learned it in court. When others proved to be entirely impatient, always barking commands and demands at each other until they all looked ready to pass out due to lack of oxygen, Belle had waited, listened, and thought. Then quietly, she'd make her opinion known. They never failed to laugh at her and assure her that she was welcome to go back to her books, but in the end they often went with her plan, one of them claiming it as their own. She'd never fussed about it, though, because when it came down to it, Belle didn't care what they thought of her.

It had been her idea to call the Dark One. Her father hadn't heard of him and had thought perhaps he was some terrible beast from one of her books. He was from a book, she explained, but a history book. She'd shown him and he'd huffed off, looking for a way to save their their Avonlea had taken a hit that proved that the ogres couldn't be stopped and Sir Maurice had called on the same Dark One that he'd questioned the very existence of. He'd followed up on it, he'd told his daughter. He'd heard from reliable sources that he existed. Belle had only smiled. She had had no idea that his visit would change everything.

Or how infuriating he could be.

It was true, Belle had proven herself to be a very patient woman, and he _had_ warned her that he was a difficult man to love, but it wasn't her love for him that she worried about. No matter how much he fell over himself to make sure she never wanted for anything, no matter how kind he could be just when she thought he might snap, he never seemed to trust her. She understood that he'd been hurt many, many times, but could there be love without trust? She'd never known there to be. That was what frightened her most. He'd turned her away because he didn't trust her once before. What if he did it again? What if he decided that his own pain, his own insecurity was stronger than his love for her? She knew that it wasn't the power that had driven him to throw her out before, it was the fear.

"Belle?"

The beauty turned and blinked. She hadn't realized that tears had gathered, but slowly the man that had called her name came into focus. "Gaston."

He beamed, all pearly white teeth and all-too-perfect smile. "Your father said you were here in Storybrooke. I can't believe I haven't seen you before now. How've you been?"

She stared at him, wondering if she looked even half as terrible as she felt at that moment. It was hard to tell with Gaston. She could have been half-dead and he might not have noticed. He certainly wasn't one to make note of a distressed individual that wasn't him, and he was _never_ distressed.

He allowed for only a moment or two of a pause before he stepped forward, taking her hand in his own. "It really has been too long. Let me treat you to lunch?"

"I have quite a lot of work to do," Belle mumbled. "I've been setting the library back up since the curse broke and it's quite an ordeal."

Gaston chuckled. "You and your books, Belle. You shall never change. Dinner then. You must find time to eat."

She stared at him. Her former fiance had never been unkind to her, but he was shallow. Everything you saw on the surface was exactly what you got in the end. He had little wit to banter with and hardly understood the value of a sharp mind, but in that moment, with the frustration having built to a boiling point, Belle found herself nodding. "Dinner then," she said slowly. "I'll meet you at Granny's around seven."

"It's a date," he answered and kissed the back of her hand. She watched him go, feeling a little guilty at her actions. Rumple would be terribly jealous if he knew, but the hurting part of her soul thought that perhaps it might do him some good.

* * *

TBC.

Notes: Days off always throw me, but the chapter is going up! I was absolutely determined.

Next time - Chapter Twenty-two: All Falls Down, in which Mary Margaret voices her concerns and Belle and Rumple have a row.


	23. All Falls Down

**Chapter Twenty-Two: All Falls Down**

Rumplestiltskin had always known his son was clever, but even he was happily surprised at just how quickly Bae was picking everything up. There'd been a few mishaps where the spell that The Dark One tossed out was stronger than expected, taking Bae off his feet, but they both knew that an enemy would pull no punches.

"So, you and Regina's mom," Bae prompted as he picked himself up from a spell he'd _almost_ unravelled in time. It had been tricky on purpose, starting out difficult, but there'd been a loose string tucked away that was meant to distract. Once that was pulled on - and Bae was showing himself to be very talented at unraveling spells, not unlike his papa - it released only the outer layer, revealing a spell beneath meant to take the person on the receiving it to the ground.

"I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific than that, son. Do you see what you did wrong?"

Bae grimaced. "Yeah, too late."

"But you did see it before it hit?"

"Just before. What good will that do though?"

Rumplestiltskin offered his son a small smile. "Nothing for that round, but most people beginning where you are wouldn't have even known what they did wrong."

"It was just a spell wrapped in a spell, right?"

"Indeed. Cora is fond of layering her spells like that. Often several layers thick. This-" he flicked what looked like a small spell forward, visible in its swirling, transparent colours of red and black - "was always one of her favourites."

Bae's hand immediately came up and the spell froze between them. He leaned in, studying it, and his papa could feel him exploring it. For all his complaints as a child, Baelfire had all the makings of a _very_ powerful sorcerer. "Did you teach her everything?"

"She'd say I did, but she was always a clever and ambitious girl. She went on to further her own studies when we split ways."

"You know you're going to have to tell Belle the story. You might as well practice on me."

Rumplestiltskin snorted a laugh. "Might as well, hmm?" he asked and Bae flashed a grin, his control of the stationary spell he was working on slipping for half a second before he caught it.

"Well, this thing is going to take a few minutes, so yeah," Bae agreed.

His papa sighed and shook his head. Of all the scenarios and could-be's that had flittered across his visions over the years, this had never been one. Strange as it was, though, his son was with him, and if he was willing to take a risk on anyone it would be Bae. And Belle, of course, but the idea of speaking about a past romantic relationship to the woman he loved more than Cora and Milah combined was nerve wracking.

"I suppose it will," he answered softly. "I've told you both that I taught Cora and that's true. I did... care about her. I thought I loved her. Really, I'm not sure I knew what that meant at the time."

Bae's eyes flickered up very briefly. He was two layers deep in unraveling the spell and had several more to go. "You loved Mom," he said quietly. "Once, anyway."

Really, the only conversation worse than Cora was Milah. "Once," he agreed anyway. "I... Well I'm not very good at loving people, Bae."

"Sure you are, Pop. Your curse may twist it, but somehow you've managed to hold onto yourself. It just takes you a little longer to get it right."

Rumplestiltskin froze. "Do you really believe that?"

"I'm figuring it out," his son answered with a crooked smile. "So what happened to split you two up?"

"She chose power over me. Tore her own heart out to achieve it."

"Damn, Papa," Bae breathed. "Starting to see what the worry was about."

Rumplestiltskin offered him a thin smile. "That wasn't the last time I saw her. I needed Regina, after all. It was just the last time we met on supposedly friendly terms."

"You still don't think that what we did worked, do you?"

"It may have bought us some time on keeping Henry safe from her," he acknowledged, "but in the end Cora is still Cora. She's bitter and power hungry, and she'll do whatever she thinks is needed to reach her goal. Perhaps people never truly change."

"Pretty sure that's not true," Bae answers as he took apart another layer of the spell. He was six deep now. "You've changed a lot over the years. You're not the same man you were when I was little, but you're not the same that you were when I left either. I know you've always believed that there's something shaping our future, and I'm not going to disagree there, but I don't think that takes your choice away, Pop. Cora has a second chance. If she _chooses_ to throw it away, we'll know, but I don't think there's some great force making her do it. Same with you. You _chose_ to come looking for me, against the odds." He pulled the last string and the spell disintegrated. A huge grin lit his face. "It's your call what happens between you and Belle, you know. Yours and hers, but you're not doomed from the beginning."

"She deserves better than me."

Bae rolled his eyes. "Good to know your stubborn streak'll never change, Papa," he groused, but the small smile that perked the edges of his lips gave him away. "Don't bother to congratulate me on unraveling your spell or anything."

"You are aware that if it were Cora, that wouldn't have been the only spell, right?"

"You'll just have to teach me to pull them apart quicker. After dinner."

"Is it that time?"

"It is, and if we're not both there you're going to have to answer to your grandson about it."

"When did you have time to make those plans?" They'd been working through his training since Belle had left.

Bae just grinned and grabbed his wallet and phone from a shelf before walking out the front door.

* * *

Cora moved through her daughters house slowly. She'd been in it only once since coming to Storybrooke and that had been to find a way to bend Regina to her will. Now, though, she entered on invite and with acceptance. It had been so long since she'd bothered with feelings that it was an odd sensation to try to shuffle through them now.

"What do you think of Storybrooke, Mother?"

The elder woman paused, her fingers lingering on the mantel above the fireplace. "It's quaint," she answered slowly, carefully tasting the words. When Regina had been a child she'd never cared for her feelings, hurt or otherwise. She'd been determined to make her into a strong and driven woman. Now that Regina had achieved her victory - though if she were holding onto it was an entirely different matter that would be dealt with in due time - and Cora had the ability to understand those feelings that she'd so trampled on it did make her think twice. She couldn't say she regretted it. Everything she'd done had made her daughter into a strong and able queen.

"I have some clothes that are better suited for this world upstairs," Regina offered awkwardly. "We'll get you more now that you're here. You're welcome to stay here or I'm sure we can find you a place if you'd prefer."

Cora answered with a noncommittal humm, eyes scanning over the incredibly lifelike paintings in small frames that lined the mantel. Nearly every one of them included the boy that her daughter had chosen for her own. One after another he smiled through the glass frames, beaming as only children had the ability to do. "You really love him, don't you sweetheart?"

Regina paused, her eyes following her mother's. "I do. He's my son."

"And yet he's not here with you. I still don't understand why."

"He still has his room and I see him nearly every day. He has three patents now and we... Well we share him. He's been so happy, I can't take that away from him."

"It would be best if he were with his mother," Cora pointed out quietly and watched her daughter straighten.

"I _am_ doing what's best for him, Mother, even if it's hard. That's what it means to be a parent: putting your child first."

"You're right dear," Cora said quickly. "And that is one place that I severely missed the mark while you were growing up. I want to make amends. I truly meant it when I said so before, but now... Now I have the ability to follow through with that. Thanks to you."

She watched as some of the tension in Regina's shoulders melted away and a smile perked her lips. "I love you, Mother. If there was a chance... Well we had to try. I must admit, as infuriating as the Charmings and the rest can be, their optimism is what pushed the plan into play."

"So this was Snow's idea?"

"Baelfire's, actually, but Snow jumped on board with it."

"Of course she did. Tell me, dear, when do I get to meet my grandson? If he's important to you, he's important to me."

Regina's lips thinned out in an old habit that spoke if discomfort. "Emma and I spoke about that earlier," she said slowly. "We think that it might be better for you to become... more familiar with Storybrooke before meeting Henry."

"You mean Emma feels that way."

"We decided on this together," her daughter answered tightly.

Cora blinked and felt a small twinge she wasn't accustomed to. "You don't trust me either. The little savior I might understand, but-"

"It takes time, Mother, and a lot of effort. I've been working very hard to win my son back and he's given me the chance to do so. I want nothing more than for you to love him too, but..."

"If you think it's best, sweetheart, we'll wait."

Regina's tight expressions loosened into a smile as if her mother had passed some unspoken test. She crossed the space between them and wrapped her arms around her. "Thank you, Mother."

Cora returned the embrace. Maybe, just maybe, this could be enough. She really did want it to be.

* * *

They'd been speaking for the last couple of hours and it was obviously meant to be a private conversation. Voices were low and when Emma and Henry had entered earlier her parents had barely acknowledged them. After the awkward pause on all ends, she and her son had scurried upstairs to the upper room of the loft that had been sectioned off into two to house mother and son most nights of the week.

Henry was gone now - his dad had called and had invited him to dinner - and Emma felt almost like she was confined to her room unless she wanted to leave the apartment entirely. Even if she did, she didn't have anywhere to go particularly. What she really wanted was a nice, long soak in the tub to wash that day's crazy away, but that tub was backed up to the sitting room where Mary Margaret and David had claimed their perch, and she didn't want to interrupt whatever important conversation they were having there.

She couldn't even be sure they were still talking, though she was pretty sure she could hear from the top of the stairs stairs. Henry had certainly heard more than one conversation he shouldn't have using the same tactic. The question was if she could be as stealthy as her eleven-year-old.

Carefully, Emma eased herself down one step, willing it not to creak. It remained silent and she gripped the railing on either side, bending over to listen as closely as she could without being scene. Their eyes were on each other, best she could tell, and she shouldn't even be noticed unless they made an effort to look over at her and saw her feet. At first she thought the conversation might be over, in which case she could take the rest of the steps down and find something to do downstairs, but Mary Margaret's sniffling voice stopped her.

"What if she hurts Henry? I'm just… There's no telling what she'll do if she can convince everyone."

"Snow, you're always the one saying that everyone deserves a second chance. This is hers. Maybe she-"

"She killed my mother," Mary Margaret answered tightly and Emma was moving before she'd really given herself permission to.

"I'm sorry, who killed your mother and might hurt Henry?" she demanded as she took the steps two at a time down.

David was the first to look over. "Emma we-"

"Cora," Mary Margaret cut him off, shooting him a glare when he whirled on her. "What? She has every right to know. It's her family too." She turned back to her daughter. "When Regina and I were in her vault this morning Cora showed up. Before Regina was able to put her heart back in her chest she admitted to _murdering_ my mother. We always thought that she'd died of some sort of sudden illness, but Cora must have poisoned her or something. I don't know, but I do know that to just assume that she's suddenly going to be a model citizen-"

"No one's saying that," David argued weakly.

"He's right, no one is," Emma agreed. "Not even Regina. She and I talked about it and Cora is staying at her house and she's keeping a close eye on her. Cora doesn't get anywhere near Henry until we're completely sure about her."

"What if she tricks Regina?" Mary Margaret asked dejectedly. "I'm not blaming her, but she _is_ her mother, and Cora can be _very_ persuasive, especially if a person wants to believe her."

"Sounds like experience, huh?" Emma asked, moving to take a seat in the chair across from the couch her parents were seated on and Mary Margaret gave a solemn nod. "We'll be careful then. Regina gets it, really. I can't believe I'm saying this, but she really has come a long way. I expected her to fight the idea of keeping Henry from Cora tooth and nail, but she knows it's right for Henry. She's really trying."

"And if we give Cora the chance, maybe she can try too," David offered. "But there's no way to figure it all out tonight. Henry's safe. He's with Bae, right?"

"Yeah, apparently Neal and his dad were taking him to Granny's."

"You didn't want to join?"

Emma stared at her father. She knew that grin. She didn't want to know it, she didn't know _how_ she knew it, but she knew it. "Neal and I are taking it slow, and-" she turned to Mary Margaret- "Blue doesn't get a say."

Mary Margaret raised her hands in defence. "I trust your judgement."

Her daughter snorted and the dark haired woman laughed. She stood then, crossing the space between them and bent over to give Emma a hug. "Your heart will get you to where you need to go. Just don't forget to listen."

"That has to be the cheesiest thing you've ever said to me."

Mary Margaret was all grins and Emma felt it catch, even if she wouldn't let it spread quite as widely as it seemed to want to. Her mother, though, never seemed to have a pause button for the smiles. She wore them openly and honestly for all the world to see. "Cheezy," she agreed, "but true."

* * *

Henry had promised to go straight to Granny's if he could walk there himself. There was no need for an escort down Storybrooke's main street from Mary Margaret's apartment to the diner. His dad and grandpa would be there and it wasn't like he'd be alone while he waited anyway. Half of Storybrooke could be found in the diner around dinner time, and while the main rush would be dying down, there'd still be a fair amount of people milling about.

While he was expecting to see Leroy grabbing a late dinner for the other dwarves and their new human-sized giant friend at the bar or perhaps August sulking at a back table, he hadn't expected to see Belle sitting in a booth with a man other than his grandpa and that was certainly not her father. Henry froze mid-stride. She had her back to him, but was laughing at something that her companion had said even though he looked a bit confused as to what could be so funny.

"I don't know what your grandpa did to her, kid, but he must have dug his hole pretty deep," Ruby said, suddenly at Henry's side. She was holding an empty tray and her red lips were quirked downward as she watched Belle and the mystery man.

"What do you mean? Who is that guy?"

"She introduced him as her friend Gaston. Apparently they were engaged at one point back home. He seems to think that hasn't changed."

Henry nearly choked as the dark haired man reached across the table, taking Belle's hand and holding it. He couldn't see her face, but he hoped the way she stiffened just a little was a better sign than the fact that Gaston had taken it in the first place.

"Why's she here with him?"

Ruby shrugged. "Don't know. She didn't say and we've been so busy that I haven't had a chance to get her away to ask." She paused, looking around as if she were making sure no one was listening to them. "Listen, this is really none of my business, but I just want to make sure everything's okay. Gold has quite a reputation, but… well, he certainly seems to make her happy most of the time and he helped me out when King George was after me. He's not all bad."

"I'm going to go find out what's going on," Henry said firmly.

"If you need help, just let me know."

Henry nodded, happy to have Ruby on his side. "Dad and Grandpa Gold are supposed to meet me here. Can you make sure they don't come in until we know what's going on? You know Grandpa Gold will take it wrong."

"Yeah, he does have a tendency to jump to the worst conclusion, doesn't he? You can count on me, Henry."

"Thanks!" He waited until Ruby made herself busy by one of the large windows that looked out the front before he started forward, pulling in a deep breath. Belle wouldn't do anything to hurt his grandpa, so he had to find out what was going on before he got the wrong idea. "Hey Belle! I didn't know you were coming too."

The librarian startled, taking the opportunity to pull her hand from Gaston's grasp. "Henry? What are you doing here?"

"Meeting Dad and Grandpa Gold for dinner. " He slid into the booth next to her without invite, turning an inquisitive look on the startled man across the table. "Who's your friend?"

"Oh. Henry, this is Gaston. Gaston, this is Henry."

"The Evil Queen's son?" Gaston asked.

Henry grinned widely, trying to ignore the utter guilt displayed on Belle's face. It was a foreign expression, as if she'd waded into the water and had gotten too deep before she realized it. "Yep! And Rumplestiltskin's grandson too."

Gaston went a little pale at the name. "You shouldn't say his name so casually, boy. You might call him."

The boy in question shrugged. "No need. He's already coming for dinner."

Belle looked a little startled at that and Henry heard the door close behind them. He turned, seeing a flash of red as Ruby walked through it quickly and it closed behind her. That meant that they were already there and if he was going to do any sort of damage control he had to hurry.

He turned his gaze back to Belle and she looked uncomfortable as she met it. "Aren't you here for dinner too?"

"Why would Belle be here for dinner with the Dark One?" Gaston asked as if it were the most absurd thing he'd heard all evening.

"Because they're together," Henry answered, his own tone indicating the silliness of the question.

Gaston turned to Belle, his eyes wide. "What? He still keeps you as his prisoner, even here?"

"I'm not his prisoner, Gaston. I haven't been in… well in a very long time. Long before the curse even hit."

"Then why would you stay with him?"

"Belle and my grandpa are True Love," Henry interjected and watched the dark haired man go even paler than before.

"Impossible. He's bewitched you, Belle. I'll speak to your father, to Snow White and her husband. We'll free you of-"

Belle sighed, but she wasn't quite quick enough to speak before the bell at the front door announced someone's entrance. Henry heard Ruby calling out from behind him, but it was his grandfather's rather irritable sounding voice that answered. "Thank you very much, dearie, but we're quite capable of… Belle?"

Well, so much for damage control.

"Rumple," Belle tried, but her excuse died on her lips. Henry turned to get a better view and try to do something to help, but pain that had broken through Rumplestiltskin's usual calm façade was enough to break his grandson's heart. Henry had never seen a person's heart ripped from their chest and crushed, but he thought that the expression that his grandpa wore then was likely very close.

"No no," he said raspily as she started to stand and he inched back towards the door. "I wouldn't want to interrupt your date."

"Rumple, it's not-"

"Isn't it?" Grandpa Gold didn't wait for a response as he turned on heel, brushing past Baelfire in his hurry to get out.

Henry stood and shifted out of the seat. "Dad, I tried to-"

Baelfire offered him a tight smile. "It's not your fault, Henry," he assured him, but when his gaze shifted to Belle there was unbridled disappointment there. "Grab your coat. We're going to eat at the house."

"Okay," Henry murmured and risked one more look at Belle. She didn't say anything out loud, but her expression spoke loudly enough for her. Everyone was entitled to a mistake now and again, but this one seemed to have spiraled out of control far too quickly.

* * *

Belle watched them walk out and if she hadn't known for certain that she was standing in Granny's Diner she would have been sure that she was slipping beneath some terrible pile of muck into a bottomless cavern that would send her further and further below until she drowned. It certainly felt that way, at any rate. She pulled in a deep breath, refusing to let tears spring up and turned to Ruby. "Could you get Rumple, Bae, and Henry's usuals to go? I'll take them over to them."

Ruby quirked an eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Yes. Rumple and I are long overdue for a talk. I need to set this straight." She turned to Gaston who was still seated in the booth, looking at her in an expectant sort of fashion like he might have been waiting for her to join him again. "Thank you for dinner, Gaston. It was nice to catch up, but I really should be going."

"I can't let you do that, Belle. He's obviously-"

"No, he hasn't," she answered firmly. It was the same tone she'd always used on him when he was having one of his rather thick moments, and those had always been plentiful. "I love Rumple. We were just having a bit of a row and… I'm sorry, I think you misunderstood my coming here. I should have been more clear."

"I don't understand. More clear about what?"

"You and Rumple seem to be under the same misconception: that this was a date. It's not your fault. I wasn't… I was so angry with him that I wasn't clear and that's not your fault. It's mine, but I need to go tell the man that I love… Well I need to tell him just that. That I love him."

"You said you fought with him. Has he been unkind to you?"

Belle smiled softly. "No. Rumple is never unkind to me. Just a bit frustrating at times. He's a better man than he gives himself credit for."

"He's not a man. He's a demon."

She shook her head. "He's many things, but demon is most certainly not one of them." She grabbed for her purse and handed Ruby the money to pay for the food in exchange for the bag. "Thanks."

"Good luck."

Belle tried for a smile and wrapped her arms around her friend's neck. "Thank you," she whispered again and walked out the door.

The walk to Rumple's house was brisk, but she was thankful for it. The cool air helped clear her mind and focus it. She'd accepted Gaston's offer on a whim and had told herself that she simply didn't want to sit in her apartment over the library - a place that she spent very little time in anymore - alone and sulk that night. She didn't _think_ she'd wanted to hurt Rumple by it, but she'd been so hurt herself that she knew that she wasn't thinking straight. The intent no longer mattered, though, because she _had_ hurt him, and she'd hurt him in a way that she'd long ago sworn she wouldn't. She didn't know the full story on either Milah or Cora, but she knew that they had left a hole in his heart so large that when she'd kissed him that afternoon in his castle that his immediate reaction had been to think she was trying to harm him.

_Because no one - no one! - could ever, ever love me!_

When she'd chosen to go back after meeting Mulan and Philip she had promised never to cause him that kind of pain. She loved him with all of her heart and she had wanted him to know.

Now she had been the cause of that pain, Belle realized as her heels connected with the street, echoing off the buildings in the cool evening air. She clutched the doggie bag tightly and forced herself to move forward.

She reached the three-story house and dug in her pocket for the key, pausing just before sliding it into place. Something felt wrong - intrusive - in assuming that she had permission to enter his home, so after a moment she reached up and knocked. Her knuckles ached with the cold as the collided with the old, wooden door and no one answered right away. After a moment though, Bae could be seen distortedly through the stained glass. He opened it and she couldn't blame him for the expression he wore.

"You two need to work on your communication skills," he said after a moment, eyeing the bag in her hand.

"May I come in?"

"Pretty sure it's as much your house as mine," Bae answered and sidestepped to give her a path.

Belle stepped in, feeling the rush of warmth and her love's son took the bag from her. She shrugged her coat off as she followed him to the kitchen silently. Bae didn't say anything either and Henry only offered a "hi Belle," from the little table in the kitchen where he sat. His dad began to pull out the to-go order and put it on the table for them.

"Guess you already ate, huh?" he asked and Belle grimaced.

"Is he upstairs?"

"Shower, I think."

Belle supposed that she deserved a bit of anxiety as she sat and waited. Part of her knew that Bae wasn't angry as much as he was worried for his father, but the short and brisk statements from the elder man cut just a little. Finally, after a few moments of standing there awkwardly, she took a seat next to Henry.

"I really messed up, didn't I?"

Bae snorted. "You both did, and that's what's so frustrating. If he'd just told you about Cora, none of this would have happened."

"_You_ know it wasn't a date, don't you?" Belle asked quietly.

"It doesn't matter what I know. In some ways, it doesn't matter what Papa thought it was - mostly because he has a habit of picking the worst possible outcome and running with it like an ogre's chasing him - as much as it matters what _Gaston_ thought it was. Henry said he was your former fiance?"

"He was… before I went to work for your father."

"I think I just heard the water turn off," Henry murmured from his place and Belle pulled in a deep breath. She stood and her love's grandson offered her an encouraging smile. "You guys love each other. It'll be okay."

"Thank you, Henry," Belle murmured and turned towards the stairs. It was now or never, and she could risk the wait.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin leaned heavily against the counter in his bathroom, steam pouring out the newly opened door. He'd had the water on hot enough to leave his skin bright red in its wake, as if the heat might do something to sear away the feelings coursing through him. He had had his whole apology worked up in his mind, ready to tumble out as he begged her forgiveness. He had planned to go over to the library after dinner with Bae and Henry, but then he'd walked in and saw her sitting at the table with the oaf she'd once been engaged to.

_I could never give my heart to someone as superficial as Gaston._

Those had been her words as he sat in his high-backed chair, listening to her tell him about her life before he'd swept her away. She'd said that she never loved Gaston, never really wanted to marry him. Rumplestiltskin should have made sure that he was never brought along by the Dark Curse and that he remained stuck as a rose in the Enchanted Forest while everyone else lived their cursed lives in the Land Without Magic. He'd promised Belle her friends and family would live, not in what form they would live.

He froze as the sound of someone clearing their throat from the bedroom doorway startled him and he turned, dark eyes coming to focus on the woman who often took over his thoughts. She stood looking very sheepish and he hadn't the faintest idea why. "Belle."

She pulled a deep breath in and then paused, almost as if she'd forgotten what she was going to say. He straightened and realized that there was no good way to move out and… Well, he didn't know what his next move would be, but his cane was leaned up against the wall outside the bathroom and he wasn't going anywhere fast. Belle was though, and without warning she moved forward and into the bathroom, wrapping her arms around his middle with such force that they both nearly toppled over. "I'm sorry," she breathed, and he could hear the tears in her voice. "I was such a fool. I'm so sorry, Rumple."

"_You_ were a fool?" he managed, his voice catching as he hugged her back. He buried his nose in her hair and focused on the fact that she was in his arms. "No, my dear, I'm the fool. I'm sorry."

A short laugh left her and she tightened her grip, fingers buried into the material of his sleeping shirt. "Bae said we need to work on our communication."

"Did he?" the Dark One asked softly, kissing the top of her head.

"Mm. I think he's right." She loosened her grip on him and Rumplestiltskin tried not to feel too disappointed by the movement as she stepped back and looked him directly in the eye. "I love you, Rumplestiltskin. I will always love you. You can be… _very_ frustrating sometimes, but… But I just need to know that you love me too."

The floor might as well have dropped out from under him. "Of course I do. I thought, though, when I saw you both-"

"It was stupid and childish. I'm sorry."

He reached a hand out and took hers, pulling it to his lips and pressing a kiss to the back of it. "As am I, sweetheart." His eyes drifted over and past her to the room and slowly he started forward, releasing her hand only to take hold of the counter.

"What are you doing?" she asked, reaching out to help steady him.

"I thought we'd sit down. It's a rather long story."

"What is?"

He tilted his head to the side and caught her brilliant gaze. "You wanted to know about Cora," he said and she pulled in a deep breath and nodded. For better or worse, he was choosing to trust her that night, and as he took a seat on the edge of the bed she curled up next to him. He spoke quietly into the night, one hand tangled in her hair and the other caught in hers. She didn't let go, even at the worst points, but held on until the end.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Did anyone else see that lovely scene that was released yesterday for Rumbelle in S4? Okay. Against my better judgement, I'm getting excited.

Next time - Chapter Twenty-Three: Good Days and Bad, where Bae _finally_ convinces Emma to a date, Henry meets Cora, and Storybrooke receives the most unexpected visitor.


	24. Good Days and Bad

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Good Days and Bad**

Emma did not trust her and Mary Margaret agreed, but even Gold had had to admit that Cora had been strangely quiet. He still didn't trust her, of course, but according to Neal he'd grown a little less agitated whenever she was brought up. Oh, the magic lessons were still on and he grew nervous when he hadn't heard from Belle in a few hours, but he'd gone back to the shop and things seemed to be settling back into something like normal, or at least whatever passed for it in a town populated entirely by people from - or descended from - an enchanted land. The Home Office - whatever it really was - hadn't come crashing down around Storybrooke, Tamara was still locked up, Captain Hook remained tucked away and might have even sailed back to the Enchanted Forest by this point, and Anton and the dwarves had set to growing magic beans that could potentially take everyone else there as well. All in all, it was as normal as it got.

"You're freaking out."

"I'm not freaking out, I'm just worried," Emma shot back, backing her words up with a significant glare across the table at her son's father. He should be worried too.

"Henry'll be fine. Regina's with him. You know she won't let anything happen to him."

"What if Cora tricks her?"

"You really don't give her enough credit."

"When did you join team Regina?"

Neal snorted. "When she cast the spell that sent me home to you and Henry and Papa."

She couldn't counter that one. It was still weird to think that Neal had lived all of this - though when she pressed him for it, he had told her that his being there must have changed things because things weren't lining up with what he'd experienced anymore - and that he'd crossed the barriers of time to get back to them and to save them. That could have been part of the reason why she'd finally given in and was having lunch with him. Oh, he'd asked before - many times - but something always seemed to conveniently get in the way. This time, though, her parents were out at the beans field, Henry was with Regina meeting his 'grandmother,' and Gold and Belle were having what Neal had said looked like a picnic in the pawn shop, and his papa had said that if anyone interrupted them that it should be for nothing less than that someone he cared about was dying or the messenger might find themselves turned into something rather unpleasant.

"So," Emma said, intentionally changing the subject and hoping that her thoughts followed, "how's magic training going?"

"That really makes it sound weird when you say it like that."

"Because it's not?"

"Yeah, it is, but you don't have to say it like that," Neal said with a grin and Emma found herself echoing it. That's how he was. When Neal smiled, he had the ability to make everyone else follow behind. It was a gift or maybe it was his own brand of magic that he'd always dealt in. Whatever the case, Emma always felt the same small stir deep within her chest when she saw it and she'd been fighting it for longer than she liked to think about. There was no reason to fight it anymore, but habits were hard to break, and self preservation was one of the stronger habits that she clung to.

"Hey," he said, nudging her hand with his own, but not quite holding it. "Earth to Emma?"

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I just think that I don't know what to do with things going right, you know? I've always been on the run, and then when I came here something was always going crazy. Regina was trying to run me out or a wraith was destroying the town or-"

"You enjoy it."

"Huh?"

"Those few moments when things go right," Neal clarified. "You enjoy them."

"But I have to be ready for the next... Whatever. I'm the savior, right? That's kind of my job."

"You want a cape and mask or something?"

She rolled her eyes and took a playful swing at him. When he dodged she tossed a half eaten fry at him, hitting Neal square in the nose and leaving catchup behind to mark her victory.

"C'mon, kids, play nice," Ruby teased as she refilled their glasses.

"You saw that," Neal argued, but he couldn't keep himself from grinning.

Emma snorted. "Yeah, because you wear the innocent face so well."

"I do, actually. That's why I was always the one bailing us out of trouble."

The bell announced the door to the diner opening and Emma's eyes flickered over. "Well, here's your chance to get us out of it again," she said and Neal turned in the booth.

The head nun/ fairy entered the diner with her usual air of superiority. While Emma had had no particular dislike if her upon arrival, Blue's insistence on butting into her private life hit on nearly every one of her nerves. She'd gone over the story in painful detail with Neal - though August apparently had all but locked himself in his dad's wood shop and she hadn't seen him except in passing since she'd tossed him out of the apartment a few weeks before - and he'd told her about how he was separated from his father and the details involved in that. All together, Emma was sure that the fairy would do more 'good' by minding her own damn business.

They'd spoken on the prophecy that might or might not still be looming in the distance for them, but she was inclined to agree with her son's father. He knew Gold as well as - and probably a little more honestly than - Belle and between the two of them they knew him best. If Neal said Gold was willing to do anything to protect Henry, she believed him. He'd shown no inclination otherwise.

"Have you talked to her?" Neal asked, turning back around even as Emma scooted further into the booth and sank just low enough that she hoped she wasn't as visible, but didn't _look_ like she was trying to avoid being seen.

"She came by the sheriff's station a couple of weeks ago. Mary Margaret jumped in the middle of it before I could tell her _exactly_ how I feel, but she got the picture I think. She hasn't been back since."

"She hasn't even tried to approach me again. I don't think she wants to get any closer to Papa than she has to."

Emma chuckled. "She's sneaker than Mary Margaret wants to admit though. I don't think she's given up. You don't think she'll try to convince Henry your dad is after him, do you?"

Neal shrugged. "I'd hate to be her if she did. I haven't told Pop all of this, but Henry would."

The blonde smirked at the idea. "After telling her off."

"Well, he is _our_ son."

Blue risked a glance in their direction, but as soon as her eyes met Emma's she turned around again. The savior cracked a wide smile. "Looks like we did something right."

Neal joined in with a grin. "Definitely."

* * *

Henry trusted Regina, but her mother was an entirely different story. He hadn't met Cora yet, but he'd heard enough about her to give him the creeps. His Grandpa Gold didn't like her while Grandma Snow and Emma didn't trust her. The adults hadn't been as forthcoming with information as he would have preferred, but that never stopped him from following where curiosity led.

Cora had been a miller's daughter that had married a prince, that much Regina had divulged. The prince was Henry's grandfather and he'd been named after him, but he'd apparently passed away before the curse was cast. She'd learned magic from Rumplestiltskin and had been a rather... difficult mother. That was all Henry's own mother would tell him when he asked. He had gone on to find that she had been pushed through a looking glass and banished to Wonderland, had become the Queen of Hearts, and had made a place for herself in Wonderland. Somewhere before the Dark Curse was put into play, Cora had gone back to the Enchanted Forest, but no one seemed to know how or why. That, or they just weren't telling him. He thought that was a good possibility.

Henry shifted his bag to the opposite shoulder, feeling his book lean with it inside. There was nothing about Cora in there either. That had probably been more disconcerting than the fact that none of the adults wanted to tell him the whole story.

"Well hello, dear."

The boy turned, his eyes wide and coming to focus on his adopted grandmother. Her pantsuit reminded Henry of something Regina might have worn and her hair was down, framing her face. He'd seen what he thought was an old photo in a locket his mother kept where Cora's hair had been swept up in a fancy style that didn't quite fit in with modern Storybrooke. Here, though, she looked like she might have been there since the beginning for all the ease she seemed to fit in. "Hi," he said at last, eying her carefully. "My mom said to come on by after school."

"She wasn't expecting you for another hour," Cora said and for some reason she sounded concerned.

"I usually go to math tutoring on Tuesdays, but I… uh… didn't have it today." He peered around the woman to see if Regina might be coming up the way, but when he didn't see her he felt a strange sort of anxiousness grow. "Where's my mom?"

The door opened as if on cue and Regina followed it. "Henry, what are you doing here so early?"

Relief flooded through him and the terrible ideas of what Cora might have done to her were brushed aside. He swung his bag around and pulled a crumpled paper from inside, frowned at it, and then straightened it so that she could see. "I got an A on my math test. My teacher said I didn't need to go to tutoring this week."

When he'd been little, Henry could remember Regina lighting up at just about anything that excited him too, but as he'd gotten older that had faded away and she'd grown stricter and stricter as time went on, finding faults even in his success. Now, though, her eyes brightened and she took the wadded test from his hands. "That's wonderful, Henry!" she announced and shot him a knowing look. "All that work paid off, didn't it?"

"Might have," her son agreed reluctantly and she wrapped an arm around him. He had to admit he missed her. If things had been different, if Cora had never come, he'd probably be bouncing between three houses by this point: Emma, Baelfire, and Regina's homes. They were all his parents, and his adopted mother, no matter what terrible things she might have done in her past, was working _very_ hard to be better. "Kind of like you," he said after a moment.

Regina blinked at him. "What do you mean?"

"You've been working hard too. To be better," he said and she smiled and kissed the top of his head.

"Only for you, my prince," she said softly, the old nickname making him grin. "Mother, why don't we go inside so you can get to know Henry?"

Henry started chattering away about everything that had been happening at school and anything that he thought he could say about either of his other parents and grandparents without it being something they wouldn't want Cora to know. Regina listened and Cora stood back. Finally, Henry ran out of things he thought he could say. He _had_ been spending some time over at Grandpa Gold's house afterall, and Grandpa Gold was pretty much off limits if he was talking around Cora.

"I saw a form cross my desk this morning," Regina said as she set a mug of hot chocolate down - with cinnamon! She was really trying today - and took a seat on the couch herself. "Looks like Belle is just about ready to get the library open."

Henry beamed. "Yeah, and we're taking a field trip there as soon as it opens!"

"I'll have to make sure that it gets approved right away then," his mother answered.

"Belle?" Cora asked, the name the first word to leave her lips since they'd come inside. "That's Rumple's little flower, isn't it?"

Regina's lips pulled down just a little, but she nodded, taking a sip from her coffee mug so that she didn't have to answer aloud.

"Hmm," the elder woman hummed thoughtfully. "Such an interesting little thing. She runs the library then? I hardly see what it is that Rumple sees in her."

"Belle's brave and smart," Henry defended immediately. "Grandpa Gold loves her."

"Grandpa Gold?" Cora chuckled. "That's precious. Who would have thought the Dark One would play the part of the doting grandfather?"

"Family changes people," Regina said sternly.

"Apparently so. I never would have thought that I would see the day when you would let what Snow White did to you go, though I do suppose the fact that she is your son's grandmother makes the difference these days. Bravo, dear," she cheered, but she hardly sounded like she meant it. "Now, Henry, tell me more about this library visit. I understand you're quite the reader."

Henry risked a glance to Regina and saw the way his mother's expression was carefully masked. She gave a reassuring nod, though and he took a deep breath. "Yeah, I love to read. The library's been closed down all my life - probably since Storybrooke was formed - so I'm really excited to see it all put together."

"I'm sure Belle's been very hard at work, though when we go back to the Enchanted Forest I'll show you Regina's childhood home. There was a library there like you've never seen-"

"What do you mean _when we go back_?" Henry asked, startled by the phrasing.

"Well, surely we won't stay here forever," Cora drawled, sipping daintily from her mug. "Why else would they have that giant growing magic beans?"

"That giant has a name, you know. It's Anton." He turned his attention on his mother. "You _told_ her about the beans?"

Regina looked a little offended at his tone. "Of course I told her, Henry. If we all go back we can't leave her behind. Anyway, nothing has been decided yet. Emma doesn't seem sold on it and we know that if she doesn't go neither will her parents or your dad."

"I won't go either if my parents both stay," the eleven-year-old said firmly. He wouldn't choose between them. He wouldn't let Regina make him.

"I know, sweetie. No one is going to make you."

"Well I think that's a bit premature," Cora said and her daughter shot her a look. Henry felt like he was being bounced around and used to strike blows. He didn't like it, and he was pretty sure he didn't like Cora either.

The conversation continued in the same fashion and by the time Henry finally found an excuse to step out he felt like he'd been through a very subtle - and sometimes not so subtle - interrogation. Grandpa Gold, Mom, and Grandma Snow were all right: Cora wasn't trustworthy. He really wanted to talk to Regina about it, but he didn't dare try to do it when Cora was in the same house. No, he'd have to find another way to get his adopted mother away from her and see if she felt the same.

* * *

She'd been locked up in the little cell for _weeks_. It was enough to drive anyone a little mad, even if they weren't trapped in a town run by the Evil Queen and a blonde sheriff that thought she could get away with holding her without trial. These people were in for a surprise. She hadn't had time to find everything out, but Tamara had managed to send at least some of what she'd found back to her contact at the Home Office. They'd be coming for her, and when they did everyone in this nutcase of a town was going to regret what happened. From little miss Snow White to that lunatic that Neal called a father, the Home Office would find a place for them. Emma Swan thought she was being clever by hiding her away until she talked, but she really had no idea. Each one of those magical creatures that the Home Office found useful would be locked away behind a glass door to be studied and understood. Then, when they gleaned all they could from them, their existence would be ended. It was only a matter of time.

Tamara leaned back against the wall, satisfied to think on that for a bit. They'd get what was coming to them and she'd be able to watch. They couldn't deny her a front row seat after Greg had been killed right before her eyes. She wanted to see them pay.

Up until that day, Emma had been by almost like clockwork with a few exceptions. She would bring by a coffee from Granny's or once she even brought a couple of beers and handed one to Tamara through the bars before pulling up a chair and proceeding to question her for the next hour as to the Home Office and what their mission was. She was rarely rude and more times than not she was as friendly as a person might be that had been threatened by the person on the other side of the bars, but Tamara was no fool. If she was one of them, she wasn't to be trusted.

She hadn't been in yet that day, so when she heard the steady footsteps coming down the hall Tamara assumed that it was her daily visitor. She didn't bother to open her eyes as she leaned her head back against the wall behind her, huffing a sigh out in a frustrated manner. "You could at least send Neal or someone else. I'm not going to tell _you_ anything."

"Someone's a bit testy, aren't they?"

Tamara blinked her eyes open, startle by the young, male voice that most certainly did not belong to Emma Swan. A boy stood at the entrance of the sheriff's office. He was a young teen, lanky and with a mop of blond hair and a mischievous smile that quirked at the edges like he knew a secret that she wasn't even aware that she didn't know yet. "I'm sorry, but who are you?"

The smile widened and he pulled a small device from his belt. "I'm the Home Office."

The woman in the cell snorted. "You're just a kid. Is this some sort of joke?"

"No joke."

Tamara stood slowly, inching towards the bars and wrapping her fingers around them to lean closer. "Did they send you to rescue me?" she asked hesitantly, hoping beyond hope his answer was no.

He shrugged. "Don't think you've quite earned that, have you? One job. You had one real job to fulfill here and you failed in it."

"It wasn't our fault," she argued, somehow feeling like she needed to explain herself to this boy. "Neal's dad - Rumplestiltskin - he killed Greg and-"

The teen tutted, moving forward and for the first time Tamara realized that his shadow didn't quite move with him. It was about a step behind and as he stopped at the bars and an impish grin spread across his face, it detached itself entirely and made a motion like it was mocking her, fluttering about the dimming room. She'd seen many things since she'd started to work for the Home Office, but nothing like that. "What the hell is that thing?" she managed.

"That? Just my shadow. He thinks you're funny."

"Your shadow thinks I'm funny?"

"Yes he does," the teen answered and there was something not quite right about his eyes as he leaned closer. "You should have brought the boy straight to me and at least you could have lived."

"What?" Tamara managed before the shadow leapt forward and a pain like she'd never felt before spread through her body. A sound, a bit like something being ripped apart, filled the sheriff's office and she screamed, her whole world going black.

* * *

Late lunch had turned into a long talk, even after the Blue Fairy had left the diner. A long talk had then turned into a walk. Bae wasn't entirely sure when they'd decided to get up, or if it had even been verbalized, but now they were walking towards the woods and away from the town. It was quiet, peaceful, and he pulled a breath in and revelled in the fact that Emma wasn't pitching a fit over the fact that he'd inched closer and closer as they walked. It was silly, but she made him feel that way sometimes. He was over three hundred years old and this woman still made him feel like a schoolboy.

"What's that goofy smile for?"

He blinked, pulled from his thoughts. "Say what?"

"Uh-huh, and there's that fake innocent face. You know, I never thought about it before, but your dad makes that face too whenever someone calls him on his lie."

Bae chuckled. "Pop rarely outright lies. You have to listen quick and listen carefully, but usually the truth is wrapped somewhere up in what he's said."

"And you?" she asked, her voice sounding smaller than it usually did. It sounded younger, like when they'd first met and she'd just begun to let her guard down around him.

"And me what?" he asked, stopping and turning to look at her.

"Can I trust you, Neal?"

The question was so open and honest that it hit him hard and he couldn't respond for a moment. His breath caught and his heart was pounding in his ears. "Yes," he breathed. "Emma, I know I screwed up, and I know… If I could take it back I would."

"Would you?" she asked and tilted her head to the side. "Because you could have gone back to that moment, couldn't you? You could have gone back with all that knowledge and told August no, but you didn't. Why?"

Bae grimaced. "Because Regina cast the spell. It wasn't something I could do and… I promised to help her fix things with Henry. If I'd gone back to the alley we would have kept Henry. Together. You know we would have. Regina never would have known him and I couldn't do that to her. Not after she risked her life to help me get back to you."

He watched his love carefully and Emma nodded slowly. "You're a good guy, you know that?"

A smile perked the corners of his lips and he stepped forward, one hand on the side of her face and his fingers tangled in loose, blonde hair. "I love you, Emma. I won't leave you again, I swear it. Just… Please give me a chance to prove it?"

She leaned in and he knew he'd finally done something right as he moved to kiss her. The sharp ringing of her cell phone caused them both to jerk back, though, and Bae instantly knew what he could use for targeting practice the next time that his papa wanted him to try to conjure an offensive spell up. That phone's days were numbered.

Emma growled as she fished it out of her pocket. "What?" she demanded a little sharper than she might have otherwise. Bae loosed a long breath out of his nose. Well, at least she was as put out by it as he was. "Slow down. Of course someone's there. Why wouldn't-" She pulled the phone away from her ear and rolled her eyes as the voice on the other end chattered endlessly. "Okay," she said at last. "I'll go take a look."

"Of all the timing," Bae sighed.

"I swear if we get there and Tamara's just pitching a fit I'm going to gag her," Emma swore as she started towards town. "Someone heard something out of the usual over at the station and automatically it's the worse possible scenario."

The complaining didn't stop as they moved quickly towards the Town Hall. Bae didn't mind, really, and he reached out on a whim, fingers touching hers. Emma didn't dodge as he took hold of her hand. She rolled her eyes good naturedly and grumbled something or another, but she didn't pull away. If they were lucky, this would be a quick check of the grounds and they could get back to what he was confident enough to call their date.

Luck was rarely on their side though, and the first thing that Bae and Emma noticed was that no one seemed to be in the town hall, either on the mayor's side or the sheriff's. The dwarves were supposed to be taking turns guarding Tamara, but when they walked into the video room they found Sleepy doing what he did best, leaned back in the chair and snoring softly.

Emma reached forward without a word and tugged at the chair, the dwarf startling awake with a cry and the sensation that he was falling. "Emma?" he asked sleepily. "What'd you do that for?"

"You fell asleep again," Emma answered with an irritated look crossing her face. Bae almost felt bad for Sleepy. The narcoleptic dwarf really should never be put on watch duty. They all knew that.

"I didn't miss anything! See?" He motioned back to the screens and his eyes went wide as he finally saw the way the screen was fuzzed out. "What happened?"

"Something cut the connection," Bae said evenly, though nothing about the situation sat well with him.

"I haven't heard anything," Sleepy argued.

"Funny, we're here because someone heard a scream," Emma countered irritably and started out the door, checking her gun as she did. Bae followed immediately after with Sleepy a few steps behind.

They made their way up from the basement video room and to the sheriff's office. The lights in the hall were on as they always were, but the office itself was dark. Bae tried to crush down the uncomfortable feeling that was clawing at him as they moved closer and closer, his mind rolling through the lessons he and his papa had been going over.

The room was silent and Emma flipped the overhead light on. Nothing happened and the room remained dim, the setting sun doing little to help. Emma let out a frustrated growl as she stumbled forward for the light in a desk. It clicked on, casting long shadows across the office, and Bae's eyes went immediately to the cell.

Tamara lay crumpled on the floor against the cot. Her head was bent at an odd angle and one arm was pinned uncomfortably behind her as if she'd fallen on it. He started forward, dark eyes fixated. "You have the keys?"

"Here," Emma answered as she tossed them to him.

The cell door swung open easily enough and Bae bent down. If there'd been any question before it was done away with when he reached forward to check for a pulse in both her wrist and neck. The bones were bent and broken, like someone had beaten her to death, yet there wasn't a mark on her, but that wasn't what caught Baelfire's attention as he stood slowly.

"What the hell did that to her?" Emma murmured. "And why now?"

"Look," Bae said carefully and Emma stepped closer.

"Yeah, I see, Neal. That doesn't explain-"

"Yes it does. Look."

One glance at her told him she didn't understand, and only then did he remind himself that this Emma had never been to Neverland. He pulled in a steadying breath and motioned to the floor, his voice low as he spoke. "She doesn't have a shadow."

* * *

The day had been a good one. In fact, though he was hesitant to admit it even to himself lest he jinx it, it had been a good collection of days. Bae's lessons were going well, Cora had been surprisingly quiet, and he and Belle seemed to have managed to put the bickering away for the time being. He'd even managed to start in on the Milah story in small pieces here and there. Belle hadn't run, and that was most certainly a start.

She was trying to put together the finishing touched on the library that evening to make sure it was ready to open as soon as it was approved. It had been all she could talk about over lunch and he'd been happy to listen. Seeing her happy put him as close to peace as he thought he might be able to get under his curse. She'd rattled on about how she was going to line up field trips for the kids and reading day. Henry was acting as her own personal laissant and was loving every moment of it.

Rumplestiltskin sighed as he took a seat at his work desk in the back office of his shop. This could certainly be filed away as a good day.

"Hello, laddie. Been a while."

The shop owner spun around, nearly knocking the stool he'd been seated on off balance in his haste. Perhaps he'd filed it away too soon. The day didn't appear quite over. "You. How did you get here?"

His visitor grinned, all boyish charm and not an ounce of innocence. Rumplestiltskin knew better. "Is that any way to greet family, Rumple?"

"You're _not_ family," the Dark One growled.

"That's right, I suppose you've found yourself a better substitute. Saw Baelfire is in town. How _did_ you manage to patch things with your son?"

"That's none of your concern. You stay away from him."

"Touchy," the teen laughed. "And I came here to do you a favour."

"I want no favours from you," the younger man - because he _was_ younger, no matter how much of a child the other appeared on the outside - said with a glare. He hadn't seen him in centuries, then he just shows up with a cryptic offer. Nothing about this could go well. Rumplestiltskin needed to protect his family, and Peter Pan was no family of his. He hadn't been in a very long time.

"Even if it will save your life?"

The Dark One paused, stiffening at the words and he hated himself for it. That nasty habit of self preservation had been a weak point that Pan had always known to attack. The smirk he wore said that he knew he'd gained Rumple's attention.

"There's a prophecy that you were once told by a seer that you sought out."

"I suppose you may be a bit behind on all of this, but I _make_ prophecies now," Rumplestiltskin growled.

"I'm sure you do, laddie. Back to the point: the prophecy stated that you'd find your son and that a boy would lead you to him."

A chill swept through him. "And that the boy would be my undoing," he whispered. He hadn't thought on that old prophecy in some time now, not even when Baelfire came to him. Bae had decided on his own to seek him out without anyone leading him there.

"Exactly. I'm going to take the boy out of the picture. I need him and you need him gone. Everyone wins."

"There is no boy," Rumplestiltskin snapped. "Bae was not brought here by-"

"Didn't he come looking for his son?"

The chill turned to ice and for a moment he thought that his whole world might come crashing in around him. His curse, as unhelpful as it could be at times, pushed all the pieces of the puzzle together in a way that left him feeling physically ill. He sank back down to the stool. "Henry," he whispered. "Why would you need Henry?"

"Why I need him is none of your concern, laddie. All you need to know is that I'm doing away with that pesky problem for you. You're welcome."

Pan walked past him towards the back exit of the office, leaving Rumplestiltskin to sit numbly behind. His grandson was the boy from the prophecy. Henry was going to be his undoing. His life was _finally_ starting to come around and he wasn't ready for it to end just yet. He had to protect his family, after all, but how did he protect his family when Henry's very life meant the end of his? As dread rooted him in his place, Rumplestiltskin decided that this was likely one of the worst days yet.

* * *

TBC

Notes: A bit longer chapter for the weekend. I do hope that the SwanFire in this chapter helps to make up for at least a little of what I put everyone through with the whole WoodenSwan bit at the beginning (I still have trouble with that ship name...). Honestly, if Bae weren't in the picture and August hadn't been so involved in screwing everything up, I might ship August and Emma, but alas, poor August. He makes a lot of bad decisions. A lot.

Next time - Chapter Twenty-Four: Nasty Habits, in which Rumplestiltskin must choose between family and that nasty habit of his, and Pan makes a go for Henry.


	25. Nasty Habits

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Nasty Habits**

Rumplestiltskin sat as if someone had frozen him to his seat. Terror kept him there and there was no good solution. Either he died or Henry did. What sort of man could choose himself over his own grandson?

_You're not a man anymore. You're the Dark One, _a small, familiar voice whispered within his mind. It had been there for the better part of three centuries twisting his thoughts and demanding darkness from him. Now, it would seem, his curse demanded Henry.

"I can't," he whispered softly, his voice broken against the emptiness of the shop.

_You can. You will. Either he dies or you do. _

"You do." Rumplestiltskin choked out a humourless laugh. "I think you mean _we_ do, dearie," he murmured.

The sound of the front door crashing open caused him to jump and Bae came through the curtain into the back looking like he'd sprinted from wherever he'd come from. "Papa, Pan's in Storybrooke. He's after Henry!"

The Dark One's eyes watched his son steadily, even as his curse whispered, _Baelfire doesn't know. If he did, he'd never have come to you. Use it. He can hardly blame you if Pan comes for the boy._

"Papa? Did you hear me?" Bae asked, his voice bordering on frightened, and why shouldn't it be? Pan was after his son. Rumplestiltskin remembered what that felt like.

His curse tried to push against the memories, but Belle's voice echoed in his mind as strongly as it ever could. _You're better than your curse makes you. _Her light helped him push back the darkness and he blinked, finding his son directly in front of him now, worry shining in his own dark eyes. "Bae," he breathed, almost like snapping out if a trance. His grandson was in danger, and Rumplestiltskin would make sure that he was safe. At all costs.

"Did you hear me?" Baelfire repeated.

"Yes. I'm sorry. Pan was here. Where's Henry?"

"Wait. He was _here_? Why?"

Rumplestiltskin pulled in a steadying breath. "There's no time. We have to get to Henry before Pan takes him away."

"He's been over at Regina's this afternoon. Emma's on her way now. Will your spell hold on him?"

The Dark One thought for a moment. That spell had been cast to protect Henry from any darkness, even his own, and the blood magic used by pushing the spell through Bae to lighten it would only serve to strengthen it against his paternal great-grandfather as well, but it had been cast weeks ago. Too much time had passed to be certain. "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?" Bae demanded.

"Spells wear down, Bae. The spell we put on Henry will have been wearing down bit by bit since it was cast." He paused, pushing the grousing voice of his curse back. The boy was his blood. He was Bae's own son. There wasn't a question there, not for Rumplestiltskin. He'd taken the Dark One's curse on to save Bae, and if that curse had to bend to save Henry, then so be it. "We _will_ protect Henry. I swear it to you, son. I'd give my life to keep the two of you safe."

Bae went a little pale at that. "Let's try to keep everyone alive, okay?"

Rumplestiltskin offered his son a tight smile and reached for his cane.

* * *

"I think they've been poisoning him against us," Cora said and Regina resisted the urge to throw the mug she was currently cleaning at her.

"No one's been poisoning him against us, Mother. Henry knows some of the things you've done."

"So it's me he doesn't trust?"

Regina's fingers tightened around the mug. She'd put in the time and the extreme effort to win her son back -apparently more than she even knew in Baelfire's time - and Cora thought that after everything she could just appear and be loved. Typical. "It takes time, Mother," she said tightly. "It would help if you didn't try to wheedle information about Rumple's little girlfriend out of him."

Cora looked offended. "I wasn't wheedling."

"Yes you were, and Henry knew it too. He's fond of Belle. Leave her alone."

"Is that how you live your life now, Regina? If Henry is fond of someone they are free and clear no matter what they've done?"

"Belle hasn't done anything to you," Regina countered testily.

Cora moved into the kitchen, graceful and unaffected by her daughter's sharp tone. "She's terrible for Rumple. Hardly worth his time. He'll see it and when he does, he'll do away with her. Henry shouldn't get too attached. I'm looking out for him, sweetheart."

Regina had no particular fondness for Belle, but she couldn't quite bring herself to agree with her mother either. She'd know Rumplestiltskin for many years and she'd never seen him the way he was with Belle. It was almost like his curse - nasty and terrible as it was - was subdued in her presence. It never quite broke, but it bent to her in no small way. She was hardly a passing fancy. "I think you're wrong," she said after a moment. "I think he really does love her, but that's beside the point. Gold can love or hate whoever he chooses. It's Henry that concerns me, so yes: that is how I choose to live my life. I _will_ put my son first."

Cora laughed, the sound not as mocking as Regina was accustomed to. "If it means that much to you, dear - and to Henry - I'll leave the girl alone."

"Thank you." The phone rang on the counter and Regina dried her hands and picked it up. "Hello?"

"Regina, has Henry left yet?" Emma Swan's voice fill her ear in a rush.

"Just a few moments ago. He said he was going over to the library. Why?" There was an urgency in her son's other mother's voice that didn't set well at all.

"Tamara's dead. Neal says that the guy who killed her is after Henry."

"Regina, what is it?" her mother whispered, but the Evil Queen only gripped the phone tighter and turned.

"Who killed her?"

"Neal said it was Pan. I guess like Peter Pan. Does that mean anything to you?"

"Other than Henry having watched the movie until the disk gave in? No, not from our world. I'll meet you at the library."

"Yeah... And Regina? Neal says this kid is pretty nasty."

"I appreciate your concern, Miss Swan, but let's focus on protecting Henry, shall we?" She hung up the phone, tossing it onto the counter and starting towards the door. "Mother, we're leaving."

"We?" Cora echoed. She'd spent more time in Regina's home than not since receiving her heart back since the entire town seemed on edge with her there.

"We. You need to tell me what you know about Peter Pan."

Her mother froze. "Pan is here?"

"Yes, and he's after _my_ son," Regina growled.

* * *

Henry rounded the corner onto the Main Street, his sights set on the library. Belle had been so excited the last few days over it that he wanted to see what she'd done with the place while he'd been at school. That, and he wanted to give her a heads up about Cora's snooping. He didn't want to go straight to his grandpa with it. Even at eleven-years-old Henry was well aware that his paternal grandfather had a tendency to overreact when it came to the people he loved. If he found out that Cora was trying to go through his grandson to get information of about his True Love, things could get very nasty very quickly. Belle, on the other hand, was much more level headed about such things, and she would know if it was something they should go to Grandpa Gold with or not.

He hadn't quite made it to the front door when he heard his name. He turned, finding a boy not too much older than himself standing in the street with a friendly smile plastered on his face. "Hello there."

"Hi," Henry said hesitantly. He'd never met the teen before and new faces in Storybrooke were rare and usually cause for concern.

The teen stepped forward and Henry could almost feel the electricity in the air. The kid could use magic. Henry had never met anyone near his age that could do magic. "Who are you?"

"My name is Peter Pan, and I need your help," the teen answered in a compelling voice. If Henry hadn't known better, if his dad hadn't warned him, he would have jumped on it, but instead he took a step back.

"I know who you are," Henry said carefully. "You know my dad. Baelfire. He warned me about you."

Pan frowned. "Baelfire and I parted on...a misunderstanding," he said, choosing his words carefully.

"Pretty sure there's no misunderstanding when you kidnap someone and hold them hostage for three hundred years."

"So will you not help me, Henry?"

"No. I'm not doing anything for you," the boy answered and turned. If he could make it to the pawn shop, just past library, Grandpa Gold would protect him. He took off in a sprint, shoes slapping against the pavement for several steps before they lifted entirely off the ground. He have a startled yelp and looked up, finding a shadow that wasn't attached to a body holding him aloft. He struggled, even as he was lifted higher, but the shadow wouldn't let go.

"Henry!"

He looked down, seeing his dad and Grandpa Gold below. He struggled harder. "Dad! Help!"

Baelfire wore a terrified expression as his son was dragged higher and higher, and soon Henry couldn't see him at all. "Where are we going?" he asked the shadow and received an answer that he really hadn't been expecting.

"Neverland."

* * *

"That's my son, you bastard," Bae growled and he'd taken Pan to the ground before he could get away.

Pan just laughed. "Good to see you too, Baelfire. Showed up just in time to say goodbye, didn't you?"

"Bring him back or I'll-"

"You'll what?" Pan asked and a rush of magic slammed Baelfire back.

He caught it before he was thrown entirely to the ground, though, and his mind worked through everything his papa had been teaching him. Magic was about emotion. Control the emotions, harness them, and them use them. He focused on Henry's face and his son's voice and laugh. He remembered how he felt the first time he'd fought Pan for him - at time that Pan couldn't possibly know about - and how afraid he'd been when Henry shoved his heart into Pan's chest. All of those memories and emotions bubbled together and he pushed back with them, sending sparks of magic in all directions.

"Well look at that," Pan cheered. "Rumple's been teaching you magic. Too bad it won't help you save Henry. He's on his way to Neverland now, and you know what that means, don't you, Baelfire?"

Bae let out a frustrated sound, but felt a hand in his arm. "We'll get him, Bae," his papa promised in his ear.

"Oh? Trusting you father so much these days, are we? I'd be careful with that. Rumple's always had his own agenda."

"You know _nothing_ about me," Rumplestiltskin growled dangerously.

"I know more than you think," Pan answered with a laugh. "I'd be careful, Baelfire. Even if you rescued Henry from me, who'd rescues him from your dear papa?"

Then he was gone, just as Emma, Mary Margaret, and David came around the corner, Regina and Cora following not far behind them. Bae felt his chest constrict. They'd lost him. He'd let his son be swept away to Neverland - again - by his demonic grandfather. In that moment he felt like his knees might give way and he felt his father shift uncomfortably behind him. Pan's words echoed in his mind and he wondered if his papa had put it together yet.

"Bae, I need to tell you something. I need you to listen, son, I would _never_ hurt Henry-"

"I know, Papa," Bae answered in a choked voice. His son was gone.

"I just need you to know that. I... Henry is-"

"I _know_," Bae said a little more forcefully and he turned, pulling his papa into a right hug so that he could speak into his ear. Emma knew, but he wasn't willing to risk anyone else knowing. Not even Regina. Especially not Cora. "I know about the prophecy, Pop, and you forget. I've already seen you sacrifice yourself for him."

Rumplestiltskin stiffened in his arms. "Oh Bae," he breathed, and his son could hear the conflict in his voice. He trusted him, though. He might not always trust him to do the right thing - and certainly if it didn't match his own motivations - but he trusted him to protect his family. "We'll save him. I swear."

"I know," Bae said again, finally releasing him as the others approached. "I'm not losing either of you."

"Neal? Where's Henry?" Emma asked, out of breath.

"Pan took him. We didn't get here in time. We just... Emma we just missed him."

"Where would he take him?" Regina asked.

"And why?" David added in.

"Pan needs Henry's heart," Bae answered tightly. "He's dying and Henry's heart can keep him alive."

"You knew about this?" Emma demanded and her fury was only matched by Regina's.

"I thought we'd avoided it!" he argued. "Tamara and Greg took him in my time. I didn't think Pan would come looking for him like this!"

"Why didn't he take his heart here?" Cora murmured thoughtfully. "Why take him to Neverland?"

"I'd wager it needs to be offered willingly," Rumplestiltskin answered.

"That gives us time to save him then," Mary Margaret said.

"And how do you plan to cross worlds, dearie?"

"The beans, of course," she answered without missing a beat and Bae saw his papa go a little pale before the mask fell into place.

"Yes, of course."

"Is there a problem with that, Rumple?" Regina snapped.

"No, of course not," he answered hastily.

"Then what are we waiting for? We'll get the beans and go," Emma said.

"And you expect we can simply waltz right into Neverland without any sort of a plan?" Cora demanded and all eyes turned to her, but it was Bae's papa that spoke.

"There is no _we_ that includes you, dearie," he said nastily, all uncertainty washed out of his voice now.

"And why shouldn't it?"

"Because Neverland makes a person forget," Rumplestiltskin answered, squaring his shoulders. "He'll need his family to pull him out of that place."

"And I'm not his family?" Cora demanded. "I'm his grandmother."

"That would imply you _ever_ played the part of mother to Regina."

Cora went silent, staring at him in return. Mary Margaret took the break to clear her throat. "We don't have time to argue this. Emma, will you come with me to get the beans?"

"Yeah."

Bae's lips thinned and he glanced over to Regina who looked more than a little uncomfortable. She was speaking lowly with her mother and Cora looked even less happy than before. Baelfire sighed and turned back to his own papa. "Bring Belle."

"What?"

"You should bring Belle."

"Why on earth or in any of the worlds would I purposefully put her within the same vicinity as Pan? If it weren't Henry, I'd be begging _you_ to stay."

"I know, and I know who he is to you - to us - but I know who Belle is too." He pulled in a deep breath, steeling himself. "The day that you died," he said slowly, "you said Belle was your strength. I think you're going to need her for this, Papa, _because_ of who Pan is."

Rumplestiltskin sighed, but Bae could see that the words had resonated with him. "Not that she'd stay if I asked her to," he sighed and his son tried for a smile.

"Thanks, Pop."

He turned, but paused before he took more than a step forward. "I need you too, son, to remind me," he confessed softly.

"I'm right here," Bae promised and watched his father hobble away. Once he'd thought that his father would risk Henry's safety for a chance to be with Belle, but he knew better now. He knew that she enabled him to choose to do what needed to be done. She gave him strength. Belle made him better than his curse, even when he couldn't find it in himself to be.

So Bae would trust his papa. This time, he would choose to trust him.

* * *

Belle listened to everything as only she could. He didn't have time to tell her everything, but he hit the highlights of his first traumatic trip to Neverland as a child as she shoved a few things quickly into a bag. "Why is your father after Henry?" she asked, those clear blue eyes cutting through to his stained soul.

"Bae believes he's after his heart. Neverland was never meant to sustain the people Pan brought to it. Not like he's done it, anyway."

"I always thought Henry had a very special heart," Belle murmured as she tugged a pair of boots that were much more practical for traipsing around than her usual heels were. "What does he have to do with this prophecy?"

Rumplestiltskin cringed. "The prophecy says that a boy would lead me to Bae and the boy would be my undoing."

Belle's fingers paused for half a best as she was tying the laces of her boots. "That's vague."

"Indeed," he breathed as she stood and crossed the space between them. Belle didn't wait, didn't speak at first, but she tipped up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. Rumplestiltskin felt a warmth flush through him, True Love pushing back the darkness and forcing it to subside at least for that moment.

When they broke, Belle wrapped her arms around his middle and pressed her cheek against his chest. "You're not bound to it, Rumple," she whispered. "It's not you or Henry. I refuse to believe that, just because Pan said it."

He sighed and kissed the top of her head. "Perhaps," he said noncommittally and it pulled a small laugh from her.

"You don't have to believe it now, but you will." She pulled back to look him in the eye and Rumplestiltskin's breath caught in his throat. "Let's change fate, Rumple."

"You are amazing, do you realize that?"

"Yep," she answered cheerfully and took his hand, pulling him towards the door that would lead them out of her little apartment and down the street. "Let's go save Henry."

Rumplestiltskin found himself smiling despite the circumstances. If anyone could change his fate, it was his Belle. The woman had more strength in her than anyone else could have dreamed of, especially him. She had the will to make things happen. Perhaps taking her to Neverland was the right choice afterall.

The others were waiting for them on the Main Street outside of the library. Snow had a small bag in hand and there was no question as to what was contained in it. He'd tried to put those nasty beans out of his mind even when Henry had told him that they were being grown, but there was no use in doing that now. Those terrible things - so small and inconspicuous, yet powerful enough to rip his family apart every time he'd used one - were the only way that they'd reach Henry in time to save him. Pan might have a head start, but Henry was a clever boy. He could hold out against his lies and trickery and he'd know beyond a shadow of a doubt that his family would come for him.

"Papa, you okay?"

Rumplestiltskin offered his son a tight smile. He didn't know what he'd done to deserve his trust Bae was choosing to put in him, but he was determined to keep it.

"I think you're making a mistake, dear," Cora directed at Regina, her daughter looking as if she'd been going at her since Rumple had gone to fetch Belle.

"I know that you do, Mother, but we'll go and get Henry and be back before you know it."

"That you believe it will be that easy only means you'll need my help more. Rumple, I know that you don't want me along, but please stress to Regina the dangers of Neverland."

Rumplestiltskin bristled. "There are many," he agreed, "and that's why you should stay here, Cora. There's no need to be looking over our shoulders when we should be on the lookout for Pan."

"It's been decided. You're staying, we're going," Emma said firmly. "Everyone ready?"

Heads were nodded and Rumplestiltskin looked around. They were armed and ready for this rescue mission, Charming with his sword and Snow White with her bow. Belle offered him a reassuring smile as Emma plucked one of the beans from her mother's pouch and looked back around. "Just throw it?"

"Throw it and everyone focus on Henry," Regina agreed.

"Right." The savior tossed the bean forward and the ground opened up into a swirling pit. Snow White took her daughter's hand and they jumped through together, Charming behind and Regina stepping in after them.

Bae started forward to follow, but noticed his father hadn't moved yet. "Papa?"

Fear rooted him in place, dark brown eyes fixated on the swirl of chaos that had never brought anything good in his life. It had been a magic bean that had taken him to Neverland in the first place and had ripped his little family apart as a child. Then the Blue Fairy had handed Baelfire a bean and told him it would save his father. Rumplestiltskin had known better, of course. He knew what it really meant. He knew what those beans were capable of.

_It'll tear us apart!_

He'd told Bae. He'd _warned_ him, and now… Now they were going through again. He felt his chest tighten and his breath came in short gasps, even as Belle looped her arm through his. "Rumple?"

Bae was looking at him with a desperation shining in his eyes. "It won't stay open forever, Papa. We've got to go." He reached forward to him, palm outward and waiting for him to take his hand. "I won't let go of you if you won't let go of me."

Rumplestiltskin risked a look at Belle who offered an encouraging smile. It was what he needed and he forced himself to take his son's hand. Bae didn't wait as he pulled him forward and the three of them tumbled through the portal together before it snapped shut, falling through the fabric of the worlds and towards Neverland.

* * *

TBC

Next time - Chapter Twenty-five: Welcome to Neverland, in which too much has changed and nothing happens as Bae once lived it.


	26. Welcome to Neverland

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Welcome to Neverland**

The shadow dropped him from several feet in the air so that he hit the sand tumbling. Henry sucked in a breath and choked on it immediately, scrambling to his feet to start running. Trees stretched out in all around him and the ocean blocked his retreat from behind. Baelfire had told him snippets about his time in Neverland and every horror came to his mind as he took in the jungle. There was no question where he was, not when Pan's shadow had brought him there.

"Hello again, Henry."

He turned, nearly throwing himself off balance as he did so. Pan stood on the beach as well, a confident sort of smirk tilting his lips at the edges. Of all the things Bae had told him about Neverland and Pan, he'd never mentioned that he'd be coming after _him_.

Henry took a step back. "What do you want with me?"

The smirk widened to a grin and Henry heard the sound of twigs snapping and several boys of various ages were slinking out of the jungle. They stepped, clothes ragged and weapons in hand, silently forward and were closing in around him. Pan was moving closer as well and there was nowhere that Henry could go. "Let's make it a game, shall we?" he asked and Henry glanced behind him, spears and arrows coming in closer. "I need to know if you possess something I've looked for for a very, very long time."

"And what's that?"

"The Heart of the Truest Believer."

"I'm not going to help you," Henry said firmly. "You can't make me. I know who you are. I know _what_ you are."

"And what am I, Henry?"

"You're a villain. My dad warned me about you."

The grin returned and there was a darkness to it. "Did he? Good old Baelfire."

"He'll be coming for me. They all will."

"I wouldn't count on that. Not with your grandfather in the mix."

Henry stiffened and tried to take another step back, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He looked up to see another blond boy, this one with a scar on the side of his face and he grinned wickedly at him. "You're going to be sorry," he said as strongly as he could manage. "My whole family will come for me, and when they do it's not just Baelfire you'll face."

"Oh I know," Pan chuckled. "One mother is the savior of Storybrooke while the other is the Evil Queen. Snow White and Prince Charming for a set of grandparents and… Well, Henry, I wouldn't trust your other grandfather to have your best interest in mind."

"What do you mean?"

Pan sighed, his dark and playful expression softening a bit as his eyes flickered around to the other boys. They stepped back a few steps, giving Henry a bit more room to breathe and Pan took one more step forward. "I didn't want to be the one to tell you this," he said, "but your grandfather won't let you live, Henry. He can't. If he does, it means he'll die, and if Rumplestiltskin is anything he's a selfish coward that will put his life above anyone else's. Even his own grandson."

"Liar!" Henry snapped and turned, slipping between two Lost Boys that had backed away a bit further than the rest. He heard the shouts behind him, but they were in the distance as he raced forward. They'd chase him, he knew, but maybe he could outrun them. His father had, and if that's what it took, he'd run from them until his family came to save them. They would. He knew they would. All of them.

* * *

There were several things that Baelfire had tried to put out of his mind over the years. One was the feeling of falling through a portal. It was a jolting experience, one that left him feeling like he'd left a piece of himself behind. His stomach rolled and the dizziness hit him immediately, but he gripped the hand in his as tightly as he could. He'd often dreamt of the night his papa had let him go, the feeling of his fingers loosening around Bae's own smaller ones and slipping away, crying out for him as he did, and that terrified look his father wore even as he let him go. Bae didn't want to be the one to let go now, even as they fell through the fabric of the worlds.

Then it happened, a sharp jolt that caught Baelfire by surprise. It would have pulled a cry from him if there'd been any air to breathe, and as they landed hard, rolling to a stop on the soft dirt, he flexed his fingers and realized that his hand was empty.

"Okay, next time that we decide to hop to another world, let's not take a portal," Emma grumbled, picking herself up unsteadily.

Regina offered her a glare as she tried to brush off some of the caked-on mud that clung to her blue jacket. "Portals are the only way to travel between realms."

"Or Dark Curses," Mary Margaret countered and looked around, her eyes growing a little bigger. "Where are the others?"

Bae felt his chest clench. Her words had echoed his own thoughts as he managed to look around, pulling himself to his knees and finally to his feet. Emma, Regina, and Mary Margaret were there, but David, Belle, and his papa were missing. Bae had let him go. After everything, after he'd _promised_, he'd been the one to let his papa go. There was something about portals created by magic beans that set a deep fear in his father and Bae had to wonder if it was more than the paranoia that his papa's curse set deeply within him. As far as he knew, the bean he'd brought to him from Blue had been the first one that Rumplestiltskin had ever encountered, but he wasn't sure about that. Something drove that fear, and at least twice now, those stupid things really had separated them. At least this time they were in the same world. He would find him just like he would find his son.

"It should have put us all down in the same place," Regina murmured, walking a bit to the side to look through the thick trees. They'd landed in the jungle by the looks of it. While it wasn't the worst place, it most certainly wasn't the best either. It had grown up some since Bae had last been there on his first trip to Neverland, but it still looked like a vision from his worst nightmares.

He pulled in a deep breath. "Don't bet on anything happening in Neverland like it might anywhere else," he warned. "There was a jolt there at the end. Pan probably knew we were coming and set it up to split us apart."

"No one's that powerful," Regina grumbled.

"This place is run on will and belief. Yeah, people can be that powerful here. If you can believe it, it can happen."

"Are you saying we can just will Henry here?" Mary Margaret demanded, her gaze hopeful.

"Not exactly. You'd have to be able to out-will Pan, and no one's ever been able to do that." He watched, trying to gauge if they understood or not. There were some strong wills in this group, but even he had to admit Pan's was impressive. He'd never been able to match him in all the years he'd been there. At least not until the day he'd escaped.

"I think I have a stronger will than some teenager," Regina answered, her tone tight and irritable.

"Yeah, I kind of have to agree with Regina on this," Emma said

Bae shook his head. "You don't get it. This isn't some smug kid. Pan's… You're not going to be able to out-imagine him, trust me. Three hundred years here, remember? I know my way around."

Regina snorted. "I'm sure do. So what's your plan, since you know so much about this place?"

"We've got to be more clever than Pan," Baelfire answered, his dark eyes watching the all-too-still foliage that surrounded them. The birds had gone quiet and the only sounds that he could hear belonged to them. "And we've got to move."

"What about David and the others?" Mary Margaret asked, not looking like she wanted to go anywhere without that plan sorted out.

"We have no way to know where they were put down," Bae answered reluctantly. "Papa knows enough about Peter Pan and Neverland to make sure that they get out okay, but right now we need to- Woh!" He jerked back, an arrow slamming into the tree closest to him and nearly taking his nose with it. He'd been right about the quiet, but now the jungle came alive with the sounds of a hunting party. The Lost Boys had found them.

"What the- Neal, you okay?" Emma demanded.

He didn't answer, but instead turned to look in the direction the arrow had come from. He heard Mary Margaret ready her own and felt magic sizzle through the air as Regina pulled power to her, but his attention was on the tall boy that stepped out from the darkness. His face was covered by a hood, but Bae would know that voice anywhere. It had woken him from more than one night of sleep when he'd been on the run in Neverland, trying to escape Pan. "Welcome home, Baelfire," the hooded boy drawled.

Bae snorted. "Some welcoming party, Felix. Where the hell is my son?"

Felix grinned toothily as he pulled the hood back from his face. A few other boys stepped forward behind him, spears and arrows ready for a fight. "We were hoping you could help us find him."

So Henry had gotten away. Good. At least Bae had done something right in telling him that Peter Pan was the worse kind of a villain. He'd given his son a fighting chance not to be taken in by the lies.

"We're not helping you," Regina growled from behind, a fireball racing forward to send several boys scattering in all directions.

The one with the bow popped right back up, another arrow notched even as the edges of his jacket sizzled, but Bae extended his hand, forcing himself to remain calm and think about everything that his papa had been teaching him in the last weeks. Emotions drove magic, but they also could throw it off balance. His eyes focused in on Felix even as power struck out, knocking the Lost Boys back.

Pan's right hand whistled lowly. "Looks like the Dark One's son finally figured out how to use magic himself," he said. "I thought you hated magic, Baelfire."

Bae didn't have a chance to loose a sarcastic response as the boys perked. A high-pitched whistle sounded through the trees and Bae knew what it was even if his friends didn't. Pan was calling them, and the boys were gone in an instant, leaving them standing in the middle of the jungle alone.

* * *

The water washed over him, threatening to drag him down until he found a way to break the surface. The problem was that he wasn't quite sure which way was up. Darkness surrounded him but he needed to choose a direction soon or he'd run out of air, so he pushed, kicking wildly against the crushing water. The farm he'd grown up on had been far away from the ocean. He wasn't a weak swimmer by any stretch, but he also wasn't the most experienced either.

David broke the surface, having seen a small patch of lighter water and had gone for it. He gasped and sputtered, trying to get his bearings before remembering that there was no good way to. He'd never been to Neverland, not even in his dreams as a child.

A gasping sound to his left made him turn and Belle surfaced just a few yards away, Rumplestiltskin right after her. They both looked as half-drowned as David felt as they treaded water. He expected the others to break the surface as well, but he saw the same uncomfortable look that was currently working it's way through him. Emma and Snow should have come up by now along with Baelfire. He could have seen Regina teleporting herself to dry land, but there would have been no reason to leave half of them behind if she'd chosen to help.

"Rumple, he's probably just swam to shore," Belle tried to say between gulps of water.

"Snow and Emma are missing too," David called out, swimming closer. "And Regina."

"Is it possible they were put down somewhere else?" Belle asked.

"I don't know," Rumplestiltskin huffed irritably, his dark eyes scanning the waters around them and David was sure his magic was reaching out as well. "I don't... It shouldn't have, but this is Neverland. Anything is possible."

Without warning magic swirled around them, redepositing them on the dark beach. David nearly fell over with the sudden dry land under his feet, but he caught himself just in time. Rumplestiltskin took a steady step back towards the waves, his eyes continuing to search the dark waters it only by moon and starlight. "They're not there. They're simply not there," he murmured.

"Then they're somewhere else," Belle said sensibly.

"Perhaps," the Dark One answered, but he hardly sounded like he believed it. "I had Bae's hand going in. Why would he have gone somewhere else? It doesn't make any sense."

"Could Pan have done it?" she asked and the man that claimed to love her snarled dangerously at the idea.

That was when David noticed that Rumplestiltskin had forfeited his usual gold and black cane and seemed none the worse for wear because of it. His usual tailored suit had also been replaced by something much more like what he would have worn in their own land, just with a bit less colour involved. Even so, his features remained very human, his skin unmarred by the scales and his eyes still a dark brown. Dressed as he was, he looked an odder mix of Mr Gold and the Dark One than he ever had in Storybrooke. While everyone knew who held the magical power in Storybrooke, that power was understated by his slight form and all-too-human features. David wondered, as he watched him now, if the cane had simply been a prop to throw others off.

"It's possible," Rumplestiltskin said tightly. "Likely. He does love his games."

"And I'd wager he likes playing them on you," Belle said softly, her fingers douching his arm and the Dark One's shoulders drooped a little.

"Indeed he does."

"Can you find them?"

Rumplestiltskin turned towards David, almost as if he'd forgotten he was standing there with them. "Neverland has a tendency to confuse things, but yes, eventually we should be able to find them. We're all working towards the same goal after all."

"Henry," David agreed. "But they're safe? Mary Margaret and Emma? And the others?"

The Dark One frowned and David didn't like the look. "We're in Neverland. None of us are."

* * *

Cora had tried playing nice. Really, she'd given it her best effort, despite the way those arrogant royals and Rumple had poisoned others against her. Even Regina. She knew better than to think that Regina would have stood against her if that little blond princess - Eva's granddaughter to be certain - hadn't been chirping in her ear. She wasn't certain what Storybrooke's little savior had over her daughter - it seemed much simpler to take her out of the equation completely and make it so that Regina was the only mother in Henry's life - but Regina was determined to keep that peace even at the expense if her mother's much-needed help. That, of course, didn't mean Cora would sit back and do nothing. What kind of mother would?

Cora's heeled boots tapped along the boards of the pier as she came to stand behind a man that had made himself very scarce around Storybrooke since his last attempt on his nemesis' life. "Hello, Captain," she greeted.

Hook turned, irritation shining in his eyes. "Lady Cora," he answered, though somehow the title had an empty ring to it.

Cora didn't let it phase her as her smile widened. "I'm half surprised to see you here, Captain."

"And where else would I go? I'm stuck here without a portal, and _you_ destroyed any hopes I had of killing the crocodile."

"Sometimes things simply do not work out as we wish them to, but I've come to offer you a second chance at him."

"Have you? At what price?"

Her smile didn't falter. "I need your vessel to transport us to where he is."

_That_ caught Hook's attention. "Rumplestiltskin has left Storybrooke?" he demanded as he stood.

"Yes, not too long ago in fact. If we hurry, I'm sure we can catch them."

"But why do you need to go, and where? My ship may be a wonder, but she won't travel across realms without some kind of portal."

"Well, then it's quite a good thing that I have a bean to create one," Cora said and pulled a small pouch holding several magic beans. They had been hers to begin with, as she had brought the giant over. "My daughter is with them in Neverland. We leave immediately."

"Neverland?" the pirate echoed, taking a physical step back from her. "No. Find another way. I won't be taking you."

"Even for a chance to kill the man who murdered your love?"

Hook frowned at that and Cora thought she had him before he shook his head. "You've obviously never been to Neverland, love. _Nothing_ is worth that."

She hadn't, of course, but she'd heard bits and pieces from Rumple in some of their closer moments. It was amazing how much he'd actually trusted her with. Her smile finally faded and her thin lips turned down into a pout. "I really had hoped we'd avoid all this unpleasantness."

She moved faster than Hook could react, plunging her hand into his chest and wrapping her fingers around his beating heart. He stiffened immediately, a pained sound escaping through parted lips and he tried to turn a glare on her as she pulled it out and inspected it. It beat in her hand, magic allowing her to hold it. Light pulsed around the many dark spots that years of stewing anger and hatred had formed up on it, but she'd expected a bit more from a feared pirate. Perhaps he was more bluster than action. He'd had three centuries to kill Rumplestiltskin, after all. If Cora had ever actually _wanted_ to kill Rumple, he'd have been dead years ago.

"You might as well crush it," Hook growled, "because no matter how much you threaten me, I'm not taking you to Neverland."

"Oh, there's no need to threaten you, Captain," Cora laughed. "You'll do whatever I say now. I have your heart."

She watched as Hook's expression melted from determined hatred to dread as he realized just what she was saying. "You evil bitch!" he snarled, lunging forward.

"Now now," she said as she stepped back. "None of that."

The pirate froze instantly as if he'd been caught by a thousand invisible strings. He couldn't even twitch without her sayso now and she gave his heart a light squeeze, revelling in the way his brows drew together in obvious discomfort. "Shall we, Captain?"

Hook growled lowly, even as Cora summoned a box to hold the heart and magicked it back to her daughter's vault. She didn't need it in her hands to control him, just her possession.

"Keep that well guarded, _Your Highness_," the pirate warned darkly, "because the moment you slip up I'll make you regret it."

Cora chuckled and touched his face as she moved past him. "My dear captain, you couldn't do it when my daughter set you after me, nor will you now. In fact, you won't do anything that I don't want you to."

His temper was amusing at worst because they both knew that she had him on a tight leash now. She would use him to get to Neverland and then she'd use him to help her save her daughter's adopted son. If a few of the others - say Snow, Emma, or that child Rumple seemed so determined to keep - met their ends in Neverland, well, terrible things did happen. It really was just the way of things, and the fact that it made her life just a little bit more comfortable was a pleasant thought in the end. Perhaps she really did enjoy having her heart back after all.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I'm very excited that everyone seems to be equally excited about Neverland! There's really no point in rehashing what the show did (considering I wasn't overly fond of it anyway), so expect some twists and turns :)

Next time - Chapter Twenty-Six: Where Belief Matters Most, in which Rumple, Belle, and David find themselves in the aptly named Nightmare Forest, and Bae, Emma, Regina, and Snow find Henry... and Pan.


	27. Where Belief Matters Most

**Chapter Twenty-Six: Where Belief Matters Most**

They'd landed in the ocean on the opposite side of the island than he'd come in as a child. He still remembered slamming into the sand and the excitement on his father's face. They'd made it. They'd made it to Neverland and now Rumplestiltskin knew that the excitement had been more for the fact that he no longer had to worry over feeding or clothing his seven-year-old son than the fact that Rumple had come with him in the first place. Malcolm had never been honest with his son. Not once. He had lied to him, tricked him, and swindled him as he would have any other fool on the streets. He wasn't any more family to Rumplestiltskin than any other enemy the Dark One had faced and this place was a reminder of that if he'd ever needed one.

"Which way, Rumple?" Belle asked and her voice brought him out of his thoughts. They needed to move forward and find the others and Henry.

"Shouldn't we signal the others first?" David asked.

"Any signal that they could see would be seen by Pan as well," Rumplestiltskin answered, looking towards the woods. There were many different parts of the island as as far as he knew, and they'd all moved about since the last time he'd been there. Neverland was just irritating enough of a place to do it. It rivaled Wonderland for _personality_.

"Couldn't we use... Oh, what do you call it? Blood magic?"

"No," the Dark One answered as evenly as he could manage. He wasn't ready to share with Charming that reaching out to his son would also alert Pan of their whereabouts. Not that he likely didn't know exactly where they'd landed anyway.

"Okay, so Belle's question stands. Which way?"

Rumplestiltskin pursed his lips. Leading them blindly was the best way to get them killed. If Belle weren't with him, he'd leave the prince to fend for himself, but she'd never stand for that. She'd tell him he was better than that and he might just believe it. "Through there," he said at last as if he really knew. The woods were dangerous, but so was standing still. Everything was dangerous. This was Neverland.

"Okay, then what?"

Dark eyes narrowed at the relatively innocent question. "Then we find Henry."

Belle looped her arm through his and even without their lips touching True Love worked to ease the tension. They moved forward and he pulled in a steadying breath. There was one thing he had to be grateful for at least: he had enough belief to use Neverland's magic to steady the old injury that would have had him limping all across the bloody island. At least now he didn't have to waste magical energy in keeping a brace around the old injury that would have likely given way at the most inopportune time.

The trees that had been just off the shore closed in around them much quicker than Rumplestiltskin would have predicted. They hadn't quite moved, at least not noticeably so, but suddenly they were standing in the wooded area so thick that the could no longer see or hear the crashing waves they'd just been through. Charming drew his sword and held it in front of him, obviously sensing the danger as well. "What is this place?" the prince asked.

"There are so many versions of Neverland in literature," Belle mused. "It could be the Netherwoods or perhaps the Maze of Regrets?"

"No," Rumplestiltskin managed tightly. "It's called the Nightmare Forest."

His love tilted her head in question. "I'm not sure I've read about that one."

"You wouldn't have." He'd only returned to Neverland once after his father had the shadow take him away. He hadn't actually seen Pan and it had only been in his dreams, but the woods were where he'd been dropped. It was a place built out of the children that visited's nightmares. It was, without a doubt, one of the nastiest places on a particularly nasty island. He hadn't recognized it from the beach, but now that they were inside there was no denying it. "Children that visit this part of the island do their best to forget they've come here."

David frowned deeply. "What is it about this spot?"

As if the woods were answering a wind picked up and what little light the moon above them provided was snuffed out, drowning them in darkness. Rumplestiltskin stiffened and felt Belle reach forward and loop her arm through his, drawing just a little closer. He couldn't quite remember what he'd seen the first time he was here - just that it was terrible - but an adult's fears differed greatly from a child. In Rumplestiltskin's case, they may have grown as he did.

After a moment it became evident that the darkness was not going to lift. The Dark One raised one hand, a spell flying from the tips of his fingers and it was caught up in the swirl of magic from the island itself, but it illuminated their area enough to see that the trees had closed in around them, knitting together so that there was no way to escape.

Charming, predictably, stepped forward to take action. Rumplestiltskin didn't get the warning out fast enough as the shepherd-prince drew back to take a swing at the trees, hoping to cut a way through it. He stopped short with a cry as the sword came rushing down towards a little girl that had appeared through the brush. He managed to stop just in time.

The little girl looked up at him, hazel eyes wide and innocent as she stared at him. She was dressed in a nightgown that nearly reached her ankles, her blonde hair braided behind either ear, and she looked like she might have crawled out from bed, dropped into Neverland through her own dreams, but the startled expression David wore said otherwise. He knew the little girl, or at least he thought he did.

"Hello there," Belle greeted and stepped towards her. "Are you lost?"

Her gaze never faltered as she stared at David. "Where have you been?" the child asked and as the prince dropped to his knees in front of the little blonde girl Rumplestiltskin understood. He knew the look a father wore when he faced his abandoned child.

Charming reached forward, his eyes glassy from tears that had worked their way up and he touched the girl's cheek. She didn't flinch, nor did she lean into it. "I've been looking everywhere for you. You left me."

"Who is she?" Belle whispered.

"Emma," David breathed. "I'm so sorry... We were... We tried to..." His explanations fell apart in the open air with the child's accusing gaze on him.

"You left me," she answered. "I looked everywhere. Nobody wanted me. Not even you."

Tears were streaming down the prince's face now and Rumplestiltskin cleared his throat. "David," he said as gently as he could, "she's not real. Emma is on another part of the island. She's with my son."

"She's right here," David whispered, stroking the little girl's cheek. "Just like I always pictured that she'd be."

Rumplestiltskin had rarely felt any sort of kinship with the man that he'd placed in just the right spot to meet his True Love and create the potion that had helped him manipulate the Dark Curse, but in that moment he felt his own chest tighten terribly at the thought of his own child that had been abandoned.

"Rumple's right, David," Belle said quietly and she stepped towards him. "We have to find Emma so that we can save Henry. There's nothing you can do for this little girl. You can't change the past, only the future."

He turned to look at her and Rumplestiltskin thought that Belle might have her own bit of magic she worked on people. She knew exactly what they needed and she was able to help them see it without forcing the subject. Though he knew somewhat how the former shepherd felt when facing his past - even if Charming's actions were a bit more noble than Rumplestiltskin's own - he fell short in reaching those emotions that Belle could. He could manipulate and he could shuffle people around the board on most days, but this… This was something that he couldn't touch without risk of it touching him.

The little girl turned to look at Belle. "You're not welcome here."

Belle blinked in surprise. "I'm sorry?"

The attack was quick, but Rumplestiltskin was quicker. A protection spell snapped up around his True Love as power swept off of the little girl that had been pulled from David's mind and it rebounded on her. Charming cried out as she was knocked back, but the image of a child Emma melted away and was replaced with a shadow that glared at him before flying away.

David let out a shaky breath as Rumplestiltskin pulled Belle into his arms, checking her over to make sure no stray magic had harmed her. "What the hell was that thing?"

"Pan's shadow," the Dark One answered. "We shouldn't stand still. Trust nothing you see in here."

Belle took his hand in her own and their fingers laced together. He nodded and they started forward, a path suddenly in front of them. He'd have preferred finding or making another one, but as things stood, they were playing by Pan's rules until they found a way around them.

* * *

Hook liked to think he lived a fairly adventurous life. He'd sailed his own world and he'd sailed to others. He'd loved, he'd lost, and he'd sought his revenge, but the one place that he'd never wanted to go back to - not even for his revenge - was Neverland. It had been bad enough when he'd lost his brother to it, but Pan must have been new to the island then. By the time the _Jolly Roger_ had returned via magic bean some years later he had turned it into his own dark playground full of all the horrors imaginable.

The pirate was surprise to find that he felt relatively the same without his heart, at least when he wasn't thinking about it. He was a little less angry and a little less hurt by the untimely death of the only woman he'd ever truly loved, but once he started dwelling on the small differences others started creeping up. The one he hated most, he thought, was the feeling that he had been - and was being - utterly violated. As it stood, he was entirely at the mercy of a woman he was quite certain had never shown mercy in her life.

"Trying to find a way to escape?" Cora chuckled as she came to stand next to him at the railing. They were sailing in quick and quiet, taking the route up the river to conceal their presence as long as possible. Not that Pan didn't know the instant they'd come through, but Cora didn't seem to care about that. She seemed to have quite a bit of knowledge about Neverland, but didn't seem to really understand just how powerful Pan was.

"Just going over the plan again and trying to keep us alive."

"There is no escape, in case you were wondering. I possess your heart, so even though it's not in my hand I have complete control over you." She stepped forward, looking up with that falsely sweet smile of hers. "You're all mine, Captain."

Hook felt faintly ill. "I had no disillusion otherwise, Your Majesty," he grumbled and his good hand gripped the railing. He wanted nothing more than to bury his hook in his chest. At that very moment, he might actually want it more than he wanted to kill Rumplestiltskin, and it had been quite a long time since he'd wanted anything more. She was tricky and she was more evil than any of the ruffians he'd preferred the company of over the years. "If we're going to survive this, you best tell me what your plan is once we reach land."

"That's a bit melodramatic, don't you think?"

The captain snorted. "You forget, Cora, I've been to Neverland before while you haven't. You've never known a place like this."

"I survived Wonderland. A little island run by children is hardly worth the effort put into it."

There it was. He'd thought that her arrogance might get in the way, but now he was sure of it. Her arrogance could get her killed for all he cared, but he didn't want to be tethered to her as she went down. "Pan only looks like a child. He's a bloody demon."

"Well that _bloody demon_ has my grandson," she snapped.

So _that_ was what all this was about. Pan had grabbed Regina's boy and Cora thought she could just walk in and save the day and… What? Win her daughter's affections through it? Hook had to resist the urge to snort at the thought. He might have been lying low the last few weeks in Storybrooke, but that didn't mean that he'd missed what was going on. It'd be tough to in that little town where everyone talked. No one trusted the Queen of Hearts, even if her heart had been returned to her. He didn't think she had it in her to change. He could be wrong - part of him hoped he was, because it could just save his life - but he doubted it. He'd dealt with too many people over the many, many years of his existence and he thought he had a decent read on most people. A good man could be taken low, but it rarely went the other way around. A coward remained a coward until his dying breath and a power-hungry queen would never have enough even when she had it all.

* * *

"Woh! Hey!" Neal called out and she felt him catch her around the middle as she took off after the obnoxious teenager that had just fled the area. "Where are you going?"

"After him," Emma growled, struggling to get free.

"Felix is long gone, Emma," Neal said, her name cut off in a grunt as she pulled free suddenly. She whirled on him, glaring.

"He wouldn't have been if you'd let me go!" the blonde shouted and Neal look a step back. She huffed a frustrated sigh as he raised his hands as him surrendering. "I was never going to catch him, was I?"

"Not like that, no," he answered softly. "Listen, Henry got away. Our best bet is to find him before they catch him."

"And how do you propose to do that when you let those brats take off?" Regina snapped. "If they find him first-"

"What were you going to do with them while we looked then?"

"I don't know. I could have knocked them out or-"

"Let's get one thing straight, no killing lost boys, okay?"

"Who made you the head of this rescue mission?"

Emma could feel the tension building and if it built between those two - an oddity, as they'd seemed to get along pretty well since Regina had decided to believe him - it was going to overflow into everyone else. As they continued to snap and snark back and forth at each other, she could have sworn she felt the ground beneath their feet begin to tremble. "Guys, quiet down for a second," she said, but no one listened. As their voices rose and Mary Margaret jumped into the middle of it Emma was certain she wasn't imagining things. "_Enough_," she snapped and they fell silent as the jungle floor lurched, sending them stumbling with it.

"What the hell was that?" Regina demanded. "Did you-?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"She didn't," Neal murmured quietly as he knelt to the ground, palms flat against soft dirt. "We did. Neverland is made out of belief. If you feel something, if you even think something strongly enough, it _can_ happen."

"Our argument caused an earthquake?" Mary Margaret murmured.

"I think the better question is if it's over or not," Emma pointed out and Neal's lips thinned.

"I think so?"

"Really reassuring," Regina groused. "Anything else you'd like to share? Raging beasts hidden away in the forest, maybe?"

Emma made a face. Neal had said that if you think about something strongly enough that it could happen, and the way he shrugged did nothing to ease her mind. "Listen, there's one thing we can all agree on here: finding Henry and getting the hell off Neverland," she said firmly and thankfully everyone seemed to agree with that. Or at least no one yelled loudly enough to make the earth shake again.

Regina frowned and started forward, her head held high and irritation rolling off of her as she did. "And I thought Wonderland was terrible," she groused and Neal chuckled.

"Wonderland?" Emma echoed. "I guess if there's a Mad Hatter, there's probably a Wonderland too, huh?"

"I'm guessing," her former lover answered with a strained smile. "Cora's the Queen of Hearts, according to my dad."

"Seriously? Like 'off with his head' sort of Queen of Hearts?"

He shrugged again. "Guess so."

She couldn't help but smile a little at this as they traipsed along through the jungle. "You make it sound like you get all of this, but really you're just as lost as I am in it, aren't you?"

He shot her a look of feigned insult that evened out into a smirk. "Here, I've got a pretty good idea what's going on. I spent nearly three hundred years in these jungles before I got back to the Land Without Magic, but anywhere else…."

"Not so much?"

"Well, I've never been to Wonderland, if that's what you want to know, but you've obviously met the March Hare."

"Mad Hatter," Emma corrected.

"Sorry."

A rustling in the bushes stopped them in their tracks and weapons were drawn. The world stood still for half a moment before Henry came stumbling through, looking at them vaguely for a moment before his eyes lit up. "Mom! Mom! Dad!" He launched himself forward and all three parents caught him as if there had never been a disagreement between them about anything.

"Henry, we were so worried!"

"Are you okay?"

"How did you get away?"

"I'm okay, I'm okay," their son promised and Emma had to remind herself to let go. Her mind whirled at break-neck speed. They had to find the others and get off the island before Pan found them. They had Henry, but now they had to get him to a place that was safe.

She whirled on Neal. "Can your dad keep him safe once we get home?"

"Yeah. Sure," he said, but by his tone she knew he had no clue how he would manage it, just that he would.

"We'll keep you safe," Regina promised and hugged Henry to her, kissing the top of his head.

"I know. I trust you. All of you. Where is everyone else?"

"We were separated when we came through the portal," Mary Margaret said. "David, Belle, and Mr Gold are all here too. We all came for you, Henry."

Emma's son beamed, but the smile faded immediately with the sound of whooping suddenly surrounding them. Calls and cries echoed from all sides and Lost Boys filtered out from hiding spots in the trees. One boy - a boy that hadn't been with Felix and the others earlier - stepped forward, a cocky sort of look spread across his face. When Henry shrank back from him, Emma stepped in between them.

He grinned widely. "Hello, savior."

"Yeah, and who are you?" she demanded, leveling her gun at him. She had to admit that it felt just as out of place there in Neverland as it did in the Enchanted Forest, but out of place did not mean useless. It would still shoot.

"I'm Peter Pan," the teen said cheerfully. "Thank you for finding Henry for me. We've been looking all over for him."

Emma heard the others stepping closer to Henry, forming up a circle around him. She tightened her grip in her gun. "You're not taking our son anywhere."

"Mothers," Pan sighed. "So tenacious about your offspring. How about you, Baelfire? Trying so hard not to follow in your father's footsteps?"

Neal snorted. "Better his than yours. At least he comes back."

"Oh? Sounds like you know a bit more than on your last trip to Neverland," Pan chuckled. "Your papa finally fessed up to you? Wasn't that a lovely conversation?"

Emma felt something shift under her boots again and she thought maybe the earthquake wasn't quite done. Instead she saw vines snaking out from the trees, skimming through the brush littering the jungle floor and the first wrapped around Neal's ankle and pulled him up into the air without enough time to shout a warning. Even as he made a startled sound Emma's gun went off, the shot aimed straight at the increasingly irritating imp, but the bullet stopped midair and he grinned. "Now, Emma, that's not how the game is played."

The Lost Boys moved in and Regina lashed out with a fireball as Mary Margaret pinned one to a tree with a well aimed arrow. Emma ducked under one that tried to rusher her, moving out of the way and the kid slammed hard into the ground as they scuffled.

"Emma!" Neal yelled from where he was still trying to free himself and she knew instantly what he meant. Pan wasn't standing where he'd been and Henry no longer had a protective shield of parents and grandparent to keep him safe. Their son, though, stood with his shoulders back and the bravest face that Emma thought a kid could wear set firmly into his features. He leveled a glare at Pan as the teen appeared right in front of him.

"You're not going to win this," Henry told him.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." He turned and waved aside a magical attack Regina had lobbed at him and his grin finally started to fade. "I'm tired of this, aren't you Henry? I think it's time to go."

Emma was making a lunge for him as magic swept over Mary Margaret, Regina, and herself, freezing them in place no matter what they were doing. It was like her body had been turned to stone, unwilling and unable to obey her commands, and the only reassurance she had that he hadn't done just that was that her outstretched hand still showed itself to be her own.

"Henry, run!" Neal growled from his place. He must have missed the spell from where he was hanging, but it didn't matter. He still hadn't been able to free himself.

"You know he can't do that," Pan answered as he grabbed Henry's collar.

Finally, whatever he'd been doing worked and Neal dropped to the ground, grunting in pain as he did. He was up on his feet in an instant though and Emma could almost feel the power radiating off of him. He flung a spell - at least, she guessed it was a spell, she hadn't exactly been attending his lessons with his dad - that seemed to bounce off of whatever shield Pan had created around himself, but one piece made it through, leaving a thin cut along the teen's face. His lips finally twitched into a frown.

"You're not taking my son anywhere," Neal growled and lunged for him, but Pan was quicker and flicked his hand. An invisible force slammed into Neal, throwing him back against a tree and he slumped to the ground.

The smirk returned. "I think I am."

Then they were gone and the spell around them released, nearly dropping Emma to the ground in its abruptness. She just barely caught herself before she fell, and moved to where Neal still looked dazed from the blow that the little demon had dealt. "Hey. You okay?"

"Yeah," he muttered, but sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as her. His hand went to the back of his head and he grimaced.

"Now what?" Regina demanded, though some of the bite had left her voice.

"I hate to say this because I know it's time we're not looking for Henry, but I think we need to find the others," Mary Margaret said softly.

Emma pursed her lips. "You're right. We've got to do this together."

Neal pulled himself to his feet and Emma reached out to steady him as he swayed. He offered her a strained smile. "We'll get him."

"I know."

"He saw us. He knows we're here. That's bought us time and in this place that can make all the difference."

She nodded. She wanted to believe him, and if she was going to save their son, she had to believe him. After all, Neverland was the place where belief mattered most.

* * *

TBC

Next Time - Chapter Twenty-six: Finding that Happy Thought, in which Pan strikes a deal with Cora, Rumplestiltskin is reminded that magic is not the same in Neverland, and Bae and Emma find their happy thought amidst the horrors of Neverland.


	28. Finding that Happy Thought

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: Finding that Happy Thought**

There was nothing special about the camp. If Henry had expected tree houses and pixies fluttering about, he would have been disappointed. He hadn't had high expectations for it though because this wasn't the Peter Pan that he'd seen on the television screen growing up. There was no happy song being sung as he led Wendy Darling and her brothers on an adventure to fight pirates, befriend Indians, and explore a lagoon full of mermaids. There was only the chanting of the boys as they danced around the campfire, knocking sticks together and whooping. Henry had never seen anything like it and he was pretty sure he could have done without it then as well. He'd always envisioned Neverland as a place he would have wanted to visit - a place boys visit in their dreams, his grandfather had told him darkly at one point while Bae told him stories of his own time there - before finding out what it really was. Now he was certain it was less of a place he might visit in his dreams and more of a nightmare.

Henry wasn't sure how long he'd been on the island at this point, but it seemed to always be night. He would have thought he could see at least the earliest rays of the sun by now, but there was nothing beyond the moon, the stars, and the firelight that cast long shadows across the jungle floor. Most of those shadows moved with the other boys, keeping the rhythm of their dance, but one slunk around freely, and its bright eyes caught Henry's attention as he realized it was looking at him. It was the same shadow that had brought him to this place, but for some reason it didn't send the chills up his spine that he expected it to. As it studied him and he studied it, Henry thought it might be searching for something, though he wasn't certain what that something was.

"Isn't this wonderful?" Pan asked, appearing at Henry's side without warning.

The boy frowned in response. "You stole me away from my family. How is that wonderful?"

Pan laughed at him. "Stole? That's a rather heavy word for it. I'd prefer to think of it as borrowed. At least until you decide to stay."

"I'm not staying," Henry protested.

"We'll see about that. Neverland can be your new home. Just think about it: no adults to tell you what to do. You can stay up all night if you want and never get tired or you can sleep all day. No chores, no responsibilities. It's everything a boy could hope for, and you, Henry, have found it."

Henry frowned. "I don't want it. I want my family."

"It's only because you haven't seen what Neverland can be," Pan countered, leaning against a tree. "I bet you could even fly."

A few of the Lost Boys had stopped their dance and turned their attention towards their leader and newest recruit. Henry nearly rolled his eyes. "Of _course_ I can fly. It's Neverland. All anyone needs is pixie dust."

Whispers started up and the chanting slowly died down. All eyes were on he and Pan now, and the elder boy was grinning. "What?" Henry demanded.

"No one but Pan can fly," one of the boys said sullenly.

Henry stared and tried not to gape too much. This was Neverland, the place where _anything_ was possible. Sure, Pan was a crazed villain instead of a cheerful adventure seeker, but that couldn't mean it was all wrong could it?

"The pixie dust doesn't work anymore, Henry," Pan explained, pulling a vial from around his neck. "The magic is dying in Neverland."

Henry reached for it and Pan gave it willingly. The dust inside the vial remained dormant and dull, but something in him seemed to whisper _focus_. Neverland was run on belief. All he needed to do was believe, and in his experience, that only took one small leap of faith and everything else fell into place. That's how he'd found Emma, how he'd found his family. Now he had more family than he could have ever dreamed of and he couldn't have been happier. If he could fly, he could find them. He could get away from Pan and escape.

"What's that?" one of the boys asked and Henry flashed him a grin of his own.

"Pixie dust," he said and popped the cork on the vial, tossing the dust up into the air. It fell all around him and he laughed as a tingling sensation filled him, lifting him fully off the ground and into the air.

Lost Boys circled around beneath him and cheered as Henry floated in the air for a moment before sinking back down to the ground. Pan grinned widely at him. "See?" he asked. "I told you that you have the Heart of the Truest Believer."

"I don't understand why I came back down. I should have been able to fly away."

"It's because magic is dying here, Henry," Pan explained. "But you're going to change that. You can save magic here. You can, and I believe - with all my heart - that you will."

Henry frowned. So he was still stuck here in this nightmare world with Pan and his Lost Boys. As the boys went back to their dancing around the fire, Henry took a seat and watched. The more he thought about it, the more he was certain that Pan that was the nightmare, not the island. The island could be anything that they wanted to make it. Pan had made it into the place that could pull your hope away and drown out your memories of those you'd once loved. He didn't know what had happened to the teen to make him that way, but he was certain that it was his own strong heart, his own strong belief, that was controlling the island. Henry wasn't sure if magic was dying or not, but if Pan had brought the nightmares to Neverland maybe - just maybe - Henry could find a way to reverse what he'd done and set everything right. He didn't know how yet, but he had to believe it was possible.

* * *

He hadn't had the promise of this much fun in quite some time. He'd been searching for the Heart of the Truest Believer for centuries and now that Henry was finally there in Neverland he'd brought a whole new game with him. Pan was thrilled, even if Felix wasn't, but what Felix thought about the matter really wasn't very important. What _was_ important was that the game was setting up better than Pan could have thought it would. He'd expected some of Henry's family to come chasing after him, but Rumple's appearance in a place that he'd long ago sworn off was an interesting turn of events, as was Baelfire's. Though what interested the teen more than Bae's presence in Neverland was the fact that he'd attacked him with magic twice now. The boy that had hated magic so much had grown into a man that, while not perfectly trained by any stretch, had a fair amount of control over a _lot_ of power. It shouldn't take much to turn him against Rumple and if he would turn against him, Pan thought that the firework show between the two of them might just be worth the damage they brought to the island itself. He just had to find a way to tug on that buried anger he knew that Bae held for his papa. That shouldn't be too hard at all. Abandonment did run in their family after all.

While their presence held potential, he hadn't expected to see the so-called Queen of Hearts on his little island. Oh, he knew who she was. The Evil Queen's mother had quite a reputation through all the worlds, but he wouldn't have thought that she would be the type to go out of her way to find her adopted grandson. There had to be another angle that she was working and he was more than a little interested to find that out.

Pan watched them from his perch. Flight had been one of the first things to go as the island's magic wound down, but he could still teleport with ease. He was sure he'd be able to fly again once he had Henry's heart. He just had to play all his cards right to get it. Baelfire must have warned him, because Rumple certainly wouldn't have. His boy was afraid, just as he'd always been. Adulthood hadn't fixed that.

"The jungle's grown up since I was here last," the once-familiar voice of Killian Jones met his ears and Pan smirked. The pirate captain had been so desperate to get off the island at one time, but there he was: right back where he was supposed to be. He had proven useful with only a few exceptions and was fairly easy to manipulate.

Cora sniffed and stepped over something on the ground after scowling at it. "You do realize that there's a better way to handle this other than wondering blindly?" she asked, raising her hand and a fireball formed up in her palm.

"I wouldn't do that," Pan called down from his place, gaining both of their attentions instantly.

"You," Hook growled out.

"Yes me," the teen chuckled, hopping down from his perch and easing his descent with magic. "I do live here, after all."

Cora offered a smile that she must have thought was pleasant. "Well now. The infamous Peter Pan."

"And the somewhat less infamous Queen of Hearts. Not your fault really. No one wants to visit Wonderland."

"You have something I want, child," Cora said firmly.

"Something? Not someone?"

She met his smirk with a scowl. "My daughter's boy. You will return him to me or-"

"Or what? You'll blast me with some of your magic?" he asked in a mocking tone. "Please, Baelfire has already tried that and I'm sure Rumple will make a futile attempt as well. I'm tired of that game already and it's only just begun. But you…. I don't think you really care about the boy as much as you'd like Regina to think you do, so I have an offer."

Cora eyed him suspiciously. "And what might that be?"

"Something that can lay low any enemy, no matter who they are."

"Even you?"

Pan chuckled. "Clever girl, but no, I've built up quite a tolerance."

Cora tilted her head in question and Pan lifted his hand into the air, a small pouch appearing in it. He held it out to her and she took it carefully, pulling the draw strings as if she didn't trust him. She really was clever enough then. "Dark fairy dust. Where would you get something like this?"

The teen grinned. "Where doesn't matter. I'm willing to let you have it. The Queen of Hearts has more than a few enemies and like I said, you're a clever girl. Clever girls always have a back up plan."

"And what? I leave this place now and don't look back?"

Pan shrugged. "That's up to you, though, I must admit, Neverland does pose certain advantages for doing away with unwanted pests. If you don't get in my way with Henry, I won't get in your way should you decide Rumple's pretty little thing has reached the end of her usefulness."

"You really know quite a lot for a child, don't you?"

"Looks can be deceiving. So what do you say, Cora? Is your adopted grandson worth all this effort? The boy that's stolen your daughter's heart from you?"

Thin, painted lips turned upward into a cruel smile as she tucked the pouch away. "Some things are simply unavoidable. It looks like his fate has been written."

"Good girl," Pan cheered and his eyes flickered back to where Hook was watching him with barely masked hatred. "Watch this one. He's a slippery codfish."

"I have him well in hand," she assured him and Pan chuckled, disappearing from the small grove. The board wasn't quite set yet, and he'd been neglecting a key piece. It was time to pay a visit to his son.

* * *

The fact that nothing had jumped out at them since the shadow had played the part of an adolescent savior made him a little nervous. As soon as Rumplestiltskin realized where they were he had shielded his own mind from the dangerous magic as best he could. If it had been a physical threat he could have shielded the others as well, but as it stood, magic that looked into the depths of a person's soul and found their deepest fears was not something anyone could guard another from.

Belle tightened her grasp on his arm and Rumplestiltskin felt himself lean into her just a little. Well, for the most part a person couldn't protect another from that particular brand of magic. True Love broke through most rules and norms, and just her touch helped to strengthen him against the fear of facing his fears. They hadn't seen anything for her yet either, but that didn't surprise him. His brave Belle had strength to share.

"Do you know where we are?" she whispered.

"The last time I set foot in this section of the island was when I was ten years old," he murmured back. "It was certainly more of a nightmare than a dream."

"Do children often come here in their dreams?"

Rumplestiltskin made a noncommittal noise. Those that had nowhere else to go did. Those that had been abandoned and left, those that felt unloved. It was an escape from the horrors that they faced in life, and for some, it was truly an escape. For a young Rumple, it had been just another reminder that his father's youth had been more important to him than he had been.

The wind stirred suddenly and the temperature dropped. Rumplestiltskin gathered power to himself as Charming drew his sword. Belle squared her shoulders behind him, her clear blue eyes searching the darkness for the cause. "Is this another trick?" David asked.

"Perhaps," the Dark One answered, though he couldn't be sure. The wind continued to pick up and he felt magic swirl around them like a tornado. For a moment he thought someone had opened up another portal and that this was his fear. All the wrong decisions, all the people he'd trusted when he shouldn't and the ones he didn't when he should have.

"Hello again, laddie."

Rumplestiltskin turned, pulling Belle behind him as he did and sent a burst of particularly dark and nasty magic towards the boy that had once been his father. Pan dodged easily, laughing as he did. "Well that's a greeting for you. I'd almost think you were angry with me."

"Where's Henry?" Charming demanded.

"Oh? He's safely tucked away. No need to worry about him. It's _you_ that you should worry about. Neverland is chalk full of dangerous types." Pan's eyes slid over to Rumplestiltskin at the last statement.

"You won't turn us against each other," Belle spoke up.

"Is that what you think I'm doing?" the teen chuckled. "I don't need to. Did you feel the island shake a while back? That was the Evil Queen and Baelfire bickering, and they did seem so fond of each other. Imagine what will happen when you and Cora cross paths, Rumple."

"Cora's not here," he snapped.

"If you say so."

"What do you want?" David growled, stepping forward to take a swipe at the boy who ruled over Neverland.

Pan caught it, and while it looked like he'd done so with his bare hand, Rumplestiltskin could see the faint glow of magic around it that shielded him from injury. He would have thought that the magic in Neverland would have been running low by this point, especially with all the _friends_ Pan continuously brought over to stay with him there. This place wasn't made for that, but there he was, still pulling from the land itself and manipulating it into spells that he could have never possibly have cast without _that_ particular talent that the shadow had taught him.

"I thought I'd come and spend some time with my son," Pan said cheerfully, flipping the sword away like it was nothing.

"You have a son?" the shepherd prince managed, confusion clearly etched into his face and Rumplestiltskin felt Belle take his hand. She knew and she knew enough to understand that he prefered to keep it quiet.

"Don't let my age fool you. Neverland is a place where anything is possible, isn't that right, Rumple?"

The Dark One stiffened, but a snarl rose up in him as he took a step forward. "Enough of your games. I've come here to rescue Henry and that's exactly what I'm going to do."

"No you won't," Pan answered, shrugging his thin shoulders. "You're nothing without your magic."

"Oh, I have plenty of it to do away with you," Rumplestiltskin answered, pulling his hand from his love's and calling power to him. Pan might have the power of the island at his beck and call, but his son was willing to bet that he couldn't dodge forever.

When nothing came and surprise flittered through dark brown eyes, Pan smiled broadly. "See? You're still having trouble believing, laddie. That's why I'll win. You of all people should know just what this place is capable of, but you never could quite measure up, could you?"

"What have you done?" Rumplestiltskin managed, his voice shaking a bit more than he liked. He couldn't reach his magic. It was like Pan had draped a heavy, wet blanket over his senses, dulling them down so that while they weren't gone, they were little more than useless. This wasn't a spell. If it were it would be something he could unravel and undo. No, this was the very structure of Neverland working against him at Pan's bidding.

The smile only grew as the sound of Lost Boys surrounding them chirped in their ears. "I've gotten everything I wanted. Henry has the Heart of the Truest Believer, and I'm going to use that to remain here. He'll give it to me, eventually, and I'll live forever." The boys came in from all sides, bows draw and spears pointed. Belle gave a startled cry as one tried to take hold of her. "You can't beat me, Rumple, not without your magic. So tell me, _son_, what choice will the village coward make? Still determined to save your grandson?"

Rumplestiltskin did his best to crush down the surging fear, even as he knew there was no escaping them at that point. There were too many of them and it was Felix who pressed a knife against Belle's throat, finally causing her to still her fighting, but she threw a brave glare at her captor. Dampened as his magic was, that dark voice of his curse whispered in his mind, reminding him of who and what his grandson was to his future. He knew that Pan was betting on that, but as David was taken down in the fight, one of the larger boy's boots in his back and a spear pressed against him, the Dark One drew a steadying breath. The village coward had always been able to to find strength enough to do what he could to protect family, even if he didn't know how. _Do the brave thing and bravery will follow, _Belle had told him once. "I gave my soul to protect my son. Do you really think I wouldn't give my life to protect his?"

Pan chuckled. "No, I really don't." He waved his hand and Rumplestiltskin found himself pinned in by two Lost Boys with drawn bows. "You know what to do with them, Felix. Oh, and I wouldn't fight too hard. The poison our weapons are tipped in is a nasty one."

* * *

"I thought we were here for your grandson," Hook said after a few minutes of quiet once Pan had left. If he hadn't trusted Cora when this started out, he had found more than a few reasons not to trust her now. He hadn't expected her to hold any particular fondness for the boy, but to sell him off to Pan like that for a bag of dust was beyond anything even the pirate wanted to think about.

_Nothing you haven't done,_ a small voice in his own mind seemed to whisper. The boy's birth father was, apparently, Baelfire, the same boy that he'd handed over to Pan so many centuries before to gain a bit of good graces. It hadn't worked, not really, but he'd been so angry at the time that he'd been able to shove his own guilt far enough down to overlook it. He'd made something of an amends many years later - something he knew Baelfire remembered as well as he did - but something of the guilt still remained for Milah's boy, even if he had chosen his demon father over the man that had been more than willing to treat him as his own.

"I am," Cora answered primly.

Hook narrowed his eyes. "Did I miss something when you bargained the boy's life away just then?"

The Queen of Hearts rolled her eyes. "If you think I'm going to keep a deal with that insolent boy Pan, you're as much of a fool as he is. Rumple may have taught me what I know of magic, but his obsessions with deal making really is quite absurd. I owe Pan nothing and, really, he owes me nothing. I'm here for my daughter."

The pirate captain snorted. "You're a fool then. Pan controls this entire island. No one comes or goes without his say so."

"Then it's about time things change."

Hook opened his mouth to counter her and she whirled on him. As she spoke, he could feel the magic she'd used to pull his heart from his chest constrict and an ache spread so deep that he nearly doubled over. "Enough. I'm tired of your endless whining. We'll just-"

Pan had probably known from the moment that he handed the queen the dark fairy dust that the deal she was making with him was anything but sacred. He knew everything that happened on Neverland, and because of that, Hook knew that it was only a matter of time until one of his _pranks_ came about. He just hadn't expected it to be so soon.

The jungle floor dropped off suddenly and the pirate wasn't quite sure if it had ever been there or not. All at once he and the Evil Queen's mother were tumbling off a hillside and he hoped beyond hope that he didn't die next to this damned woman on this hellish island.

* * *

Regina had been the one to protest the loudest when Bae had said they needed to get some rest. He'd understood her frustration, but he'd also survived for three centuries in this place. He knew what it took, and exhaustion was the best way to get captured or killed, and he was pretty sure that Pan had no use for them alive. He'd finally explained that in a way that somehow became acceptable enough that it didn't cause the ground to open up and swallow them after another argument.

Now, though, as Baelfire lay by the campfire he found his thoughts running like mad. None of this was working out in the way that it had once before and while he was doing a fair job at pretending to know what the hell he was doing, he was starting to feel more lost by the moment. He'd expected to come across the others by this point. It wasn't that he didn't trust his father, but he did know him. Rumplestiltskin hadn't put two and two together on Henry being the boy from the prophecy, but now that he had his son knew that it would be an uphill battle to fight his curse's demands for self preservation. They could find a way around the prophecy, he was certain, but his papa did tend to become very single-sighted when it came down to situations like this. Bae didn't want to risk him doing something incredibly stupid that would get himself killed any more than he wanted the Dark One's curse to win out and for Rumplestiltskin to choose himself over his grandson. Which he wouldn't do. Bae knew he wouldn't.

A sigh escaped him and he turned over in his place, finding Emma's sleeping spot empty of a savior. Apparently he wasn't the only one who couldn't sleep. Slowly he pushed himself up to his knees and then to his feet, glancing over to make sure that Mary Margaret and Regina were both still sound asleep in their own places. They were, and he walked silently over towards where he saw Emma sitting on a fallen tree a few yards away.

The blonde looked up as he approached, offering him a strained smile. "You really lived here?"

"I survived here," Bae corrected quietly, taking a seat next to her. "I think at one time Neverland was supposed to be a place that kids could visit in their dreams, but Pan's turned it into a nightmare."

"How do you sleep with that sound?"

"What sound?"

"The crying."

Bae froze, blinking in confusion. It had been nighttime since they came to Neverland and it might be nighttime until they escaped. It was hard to tell when the Lost Boys laid down to sleep, so he hadn't thought anything of the quiet jungle or the fact that he couldn't hear them crying for their lost homes that they might never see again. "You can hear crying?" he asked uncertainly.

"Yeah, can't you?"

"I could once," he managed, the realization of what that meant hitting him hard. Pan preyed on orphans and boys that felt unloved. He'd heard those same boys cry into the night every night that he had been there for the three centuries after his father had abandoned him. They wailed and he had cried softly with them as he woke from dreams of Rumplestiltskin coming to save him to the nightmare that had been his reality. He had been alone. He had, by all practical purposes, been an orphan here. Now, though, it was silent, with only the breeze rustling through the trees and the occasional bird calling out. He wasn't an orphan anymore. He had a home and a family. He knew his and his father's relationship would never be what it once was, but it was strong enough to override the loneliness Neverland brought with it.

"Why not now?" Emma asked, breaking him from his thoughts.

"Only certain people can hear it," Bae answered quietly. As much as his own realization lightened his heart, he understood exactly what it meant for Emma. She'd wanted a family and a home as much as he had, and while she had one now, she didn't feel like she did. "Orphans, kids that have been abandoned or neglected…"

Emma's hazel eyes flickered over to where her mother was sleeping in the camp. "But I found them."

He shrugged. "Neverland can play tricks on your mind."

"How did you get through it?"

Bae found himself smiling sadly. "It sounds crazy, but that whole _think happy thoughts_ thing from the movies isn't far off. For a long time, I held onto the people I loved most in my mind. The people that made me happy."

"Henry."

He tilted his head in question and she echoed his small smile.

"Henry's my happy thought."

A warmth filled him and the smile turned a little more real for him. "Me too," he confessed softly. "Henry, and you, and Papa. My family." He paused, risking the moment by putting his hand to the side of her face and he found her cheek wet in the dark. Emma had never been a crier, but when she did so she didn't like anyone to see. He thumbed it away. "You're not alone anymore, Emma."

"I know, and that's what scares me," she confessed softly. "Everyone that wants to be close to me now - everyone except Henry - has hurt me."

Guilt swept through him and Bae started to drop his hand, surprised when she caught it and held it. "Don't leave me," she whispered, her voice more honest and open than he was used to and he gave her a crooked smile.

"I crossed time for you. I'm never going anywhere again."

It was Emma that leaned forward then, pressing her lips to his and Bae felt something rush through him. It was warm and it was bright and as he kissed her back he forgot for just a moment all the horrors that surrounded them. Time always stood still in Neverland, but for them, in that moment, they were the only ones that it paused for.

They broke suddenly at the sound of someone crying out and something hit the water that they'd backed their little camp up to. Both he and Emma were on their feet in an instant, finding Regina and Mary Margaret stumbling to their feet.

The water lapped the sides of the bank and they all peered in, waiting to see if anything would come back up. It - or rather she - did, as Cora broke the surface looking more angry than Baelfire thought a person could. She let out a howl of frustration that could have woken the dead as she teleported out of the water and onto dry land, magic flinging liquid all around and nearly dousing their camp fire. "_Mother_?" Regina managed.

Another figure came up from the depths as well, though he didn't have magic to help him to the side, though pirates hardly had an issue with swimming. Bae stared in surprise as Killian Jones made his way to the bank and pulled himself up on it. His leathers were drenched and he ran his good hand through his hair, making it stand on end. And Bae thought that things couldn't get a great deal worse in the way their search parties were laid out in Neverland.

Hook saw him gaping and flashed a devilish smile his direction. "Hello, Baelfire. Imagine meeting you here of all places."

Suddenly the fact that they hadn't happened across his papa became more worrisome than before and felt power gather around him, almost without command. Killian must have seen something of it as his eyes grew wide and he raised his hands outward in a sign of peace, but it did nothing to quell the unease rising within Bae. "What the hell are you two doing in Neverland?" he demanded and Hook inched away from him, the water and cliffside behind him giving him no real means of escape.

* * *

TBC

Notes: It always baffled me that Bae never seemed to really hold much against Hook in the series. Sure they bickered over Emma, but the fact that he'd tried to kill his father or that he sold him off to Pan as a kid never seemed to bother Bae in S3 when they're working together. I've heard that there were scenes that were never filmed due to injuries with the actors, but it still drives me absolutely mad.

Next Time - Chapter Twenty-Eight: Home, in which Hook and Bae discuss the past, Henry discovers someone locked away outside of Pan's camp, and Rumplestiltskin learns just how strong True Love really is.


	29. Home

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: Home**

The stress over Cora and Hook's abrupt appearance in Neverland was palatable as Bae cornered the pirate and Regina stared at her mother who was smiling that smile she always gave when she had an excuse. The others stood absolutely still, as if any movement would spook someone into an all-out brawl. Regina took one step forward, not willing to be completely overrun without any sayso at all. "Mother, we decided-"

"You didn't think I was going to let you face this alone, did you, sweetheart?"

"She's not alone." That was Snow, much to Regina's surprise. Her step-daughter squared her shoulders and straightened her spine. Regina had seen the expression before - many times, in fact - but never in attempt to defend _her_. Because despite the irritations of being around her too-good former enemy, there was something almost refreshing in having someone in her corner other than Rumplestiltskin when it came to raging with her mother, and she was never quite sure which corner Rumple actually sat in on most days. "We're here with her and she's here with us. We'll save Henry."

"And you're doing such a fine job of it, dear," Cora cooed. "You needn't worry about him, Baelfire, I have him quite under control."

Regina couldn't imagine what had set Rumple's son so on edge about the pirate, but if he continued to gather power to him like he was and managed to direct it all at him, Hook wouldn't last ten seconds against it. Apparently Bae had come quite a ways in his training with his father, but the Evil Queen knew her former teacher would never forgive her if she let his son injure himself while reaching too deep into untrained magic.

Emma beat her to it though. "Neal, I know what he did to your dad, but they're here now. Fighting Hook or Cora is just going to distract us from what's really important."

That seemed to get through to him and Baelfire's shoulders relaxed a bit, his magic deflating and slowly dissipating into the air. "Henry," he murmured.

"Right."

"Now that you have your priorities back on track," Regina grumbled, "maybe we can get on with it. I think we've laid around here long enough."

"Have you found his camp yet?" Cora asked. "We've come through from the sea into the river and haven't seen any sign of Pan or Henry."

Regina didn't miss the look the pirate shot her mother, but Cora seemed to either ignore it or was entirely oblivious to it. Granted, Regina had never known her mother to be oblivious to anything. She pursed her lips and reminded herself that Cora always had an ulterior motive, even if she had her heart back. There were some things that would never change. That didn't mean that her mother wasn't there to help, in her own way, it simply meant that her own way might not actually be anyone else's. "We found him but Pan took Henry. We were separated from the others when we came through and-"

"And he's too strong for just you, isn't he, dear?" Cora asked in that too-sweet voice that made her daughter frown.

"It's not just me. Baelfire has been studying under Rumple and…" Her eyes snapped over to Emma. She hadn't thought about the savior before, but she had heard through the grapevine that Emma had managed to perform some level of magic here and there. It wasn't shocking, considering the strength from which she was born and the fact that she was immediately shoved through a magic wardrobe to escape an oncoming curse. "Emma."

"Say what?" the blonde managed.

Regina's dark eyes flickered to Bae. "She can do magic, can't she?"

Rumplestiltskin's son looked like he'd rather be anywhere than in a place that required him to answer that particular question. "I… uh… She's done it before, but it's not like she's trained or anything… Papa hasn't-"

"That's fine," Regina said briskly, turning her attention back to the younger woman. "You know we're going to need everything that we have to defeat Pan."

"I don't know how to do magic," Emma argued. "I can't control it, and from what Neal says, that makes it more dangerous."

"I'll teach you."

"You?"

"Well don't act so surprised."

Emma looked petrified rather than surprised and her gaze went immediately to her mother. Regina tried not to frown. If anyone would shoot down the idea of Regina teaching Emma Swan magic, it was her mother.

"I think it's a good idea," Snow White said instead.

"_What_?" Emma demanded.

"Well, you have it in you. I think you should learn to use it."

"She's not wrong," Baelfire murmured and Emma looked thoroughly betrayed.

"I don't… I can't… I don't want to be like you."

Regina didn't feel quite as offended as she thought she should. "There's light and dark magic. Just because I teach you doesn't mean you have to choose dark."

"Really?"

"Really."

"And you think this will help us get Henry back faster?"

"I do."

"Regina, you can't possibly think of letting these… _novices_ help us fight for Henry," Cora argued.

"I think that's exactly what we need to do, Mother. And _you_ were supposed to stay in Storybrooke, so I don't think you get a say." For the first time since they hit Neverland, Regina felt something akin to hope bubbling within her. "We're going to save our son."

* * *

When she had been young her mother had read great tales of adventure and romance to her. Belle had clung to those stories like a life raft that would save her from the life she'd have much preferred not living. She wanted adventures, not to be trapped inside a castle with a fiancé she didn't love and a life that seemed to have no purpose. She'd imagined far off places. daring swordfights, and perhaps even a little bit of magic. As the tall blond boy shoved her forward, she supposed that she'd gotten her wish. She hadn't pictured it quite like this, though.

"Belle, isn't it?" Pan asked her and he wore an impish grin. It was difficult to believe this boy was really a man that had chosen to give up his son - abandon him - for youth, though as she watched him she thought she was really beginning to see where so much of Rumple's uncertainty stemmed from. Pile on top of that Milah and Cora, as well as a curse that encouraged paranoia and it was a recipe for disaster. It was a miracle Rumple had turned out as well as he had.

Pan continued to grin when she didn't answer. "Of course it is. You're Rumple's pretty little thing."

She wasn't sure what it was was with Rumple's enemies and their view of her, but she was more than a little tired of it. She wasn't a doll, she wasn't a flower, and she most certainly would not a trinket he possessed as they all seemed to think she was. She was his True Love and he was hers. She straightened her shoulders and put on her best glare. "You're not going to win."

The teen chuckled. "Is that so?" he asked in a mocking, childish voice. "Is Rumple going to save you?"

Yes, Rumple had certainly come out better than anyone could have asked if this was his father. Even Belle felt the need to lash out at him, and she had always prided herself on her patience and self-restraint. "We're all going to save Henry from you."

"I'd like to see you try." His smile turned deadly and he grabbed her by the wrist, turning her hand palm-up. "Really I would. It'd be a fun game. In fact, let's start now."

Belle tried to tug her hand free, but Pan was stronger than he looked. He pressed the sharp end of his knife along her palm and pressed down. She refused to make a sound, even as the sharp blade split skin and Pan smirked. "You see, Belle, I have no real interest in killing Rumple - much too permanent - but I can't have him running around with the idea in his head that he can rescue Henry. He might break my hold." His eyes flickered up and Belle felt a coldness spread through her. "But _you_ I don't mind killing."

He released her wrist and Belle pulled it back immediately, inspecting the cut that already was beginning to look funny. The blood was tinged a strange yellowish colour and small veins had already begun to stretch out from the wound itself. She'd seen this before when the pirate had attacked Rumple in the shop. "Dreamshade," she whispered.

"Well aren't you a clever girl? It won't kill you right away. It has to make it to your heart first and I've given it a ways to go, but Rumple will be too busy worrying about you to get in my way. In a way, you might just save his life."

Belle clutched her injured hand to her and her eyes narrowed, not a hint of fear in them. "Rumple's stronger than you could ever know. All you've done is sealed your own fate."

"Quite a bit of faith in him," Pan mused.

"This place is built on belief, right?" she asked and waited until he nodded. A smile of her own, full of confidence, stretched her painted lips. "I believe in Rumplestiltskin. He won't fail."

* * *

"Just hear me out."

Bae jerked away as the words left his former friend's lips. He didn't like this sitting around any more than Regina would have had she not been trying to teach Emma to light the campfire - with magic - that had been doused a couple hours earlier. "Whatever you have to say isn't enough this time, Killian."

The pirate caught his sleeve. "Bae, this has to do with the boy," he said in hushed tones.

That caught the younger man's attention and he wondered just how much Hook knew. He turned a careful gaze on him and narrowed his eyes. "What about Henry?"

Blue eyes flickered over the where Cora was sitting on a rock, looking ever-so the queen even surrounded by the jungle. When he seemed convinced enough his new mistress wasn't listening, he continued. "Cora made a deal with Pan to stay out of his way with Henry. She's going to make it look like she's helping, but she-"

"Why should I believe you? You're working with her."

"Not by choice," the captain answered. "She has my heart. Do you think I would have come back here of my own free will? You remember what it was like for me after…"

Bae snorted. "After you killed that kid?"

"He was older than you at the time."

"I'd been here more than two centuries by then."

"And he'd been here years before you. Rufio was no new recruit. He knew what he was doing." Hook looked at him pointedly. "Both when he attacked you and when he dueled with me."

Bae knew that Rufio hadn't been a child, or at least no more than any of them had. They'd all been alive for centuries at that point and he'd been in the position that Felix now held at Pan's side. Rufio had been particularly determined to make Bae's life a living hell after his first escape attempt and it had only gone downhill from there. Baelfire knew exactly what Hook was referring to and remembered the night well. He'd been woken from his nook that he'd been dozing in, the sound of Lost Boys startling him awake and sending him running. Pan hadn't led that hunt. Rufio had, and he would have caught Bae too if Hook hadn't been looking for some way to get back into his dead love's son's good graces. "And you knew what you were doing when you when you ran him through."

"Aye, that I did," Hook murmured. "As I know what I'm doing now that I'm betraying the woman who could easily crush my heart, and I do mean that literally. Your boy's in danger."

"Of course he is. He's in Neverland," Bae growled. He didn't have time for Hook's games. They'd been irritating in his own timeline. He'd been willing to look past them for his help, but if he didn't have a reason to be on their side - and if Cora truly did have his heart, her reasons were now his - there was no telling what he'd do. Hook had always befriended the ones he thought most likely to get him what he wanted. Bae supposed he shouldn't blame him for it - he _was_ a pirate - but that didn't mean he had to trust him. Or rekindle any old friendship that hadn't really lasted very long to begin with.

The pirate captain sighed. "I should have spoken to Emma."

That was the _last_ thing Bae needed. "Fine," he snapped. "What sort of deal did they make?"

"He provided her with some bit of dark magic in exchange for her staying out of his way. Cora claims to be willing to break that deal, but you and I both know Pan knows everything that transpires of this island."

Bae frowned. "Either way it's dangerous," he murmured. His papa was notorious for holding people to their deals, but it was all one big, dangerous game to Pan. Bae's grandfather likely already knew that Cora was ready to double cross him - which begged the question why he would just hand over powerful dark magic to someone he knew couldn't be trusted - and now that she was with them it would make it that much harder to get to Henry. If she wasn't going to double cross Pan... Bae didn't even want to think of that.

"Agreed," Killian murmured. "I know... I know that I did wrong by you more than I did right in Neverland, Bae, but you and I know this place best. If we're going to save your boy then we need to work together. The Evil Queen's idea of teaching Swan magic is all well and good, but to get into the camp we'll need more."

"I know," the younger man murmured. He pulled in a deep breath, forcing himself to look at the pirate. "I'll trust you, Killian, on one condition."

"What's that?"

"You and Pop are done with this whole vendetta thing. It's over. This is about Henry, not you, not my mom. The feud is done and over."

Hook seemed to think on this a moment. "And what reassurance do I have he won't strike out in vengeance for the dreamshade?"

"I'll take care of Papa if I have your word."

"Then you have it," the pirate answered slowly and extended his good hand. Bae shook it and they both looked over, startled, as Emma's raised voice caught their attention.

Regina, though, was smiling, only agitating the savior a little more. Bae chuckled and she turned on him. "Look."

Her eyes followed to where he was pointing and to the flames that were crackling up from the previously dead fire pit. She stared at it and Bae's eyes met Regina. Despite herself, she looked proud of her reluctant student's accomplishment. It was one step closer to saving Henry and they needed to move quickly. The longer he was there, the harder it would be to leave.

* * *

Henry had been left more or less on his own while Pan was off again. More or less because while no one was talking to him there was always a Lost Boy or two trailing behind him. Then there was Pan's shadow as well. It fluttered around, sometimes there and sometimes not, but when it was it was _always_ watching him. Those lamplight eyes stared at him from its perch and from the sky. Pan might not fly, but the shadow did, and Henry wondered if it held the secret.

He'd managed to wander away from the camp a bit, but not too far. One of his tails had already disappeared and Henry knew either Pan or Felix's arrival wouldn't be far behind. It seemed like the game they'd played since they'd captured him, though how long ago that had been, he had no idea. Hours and days and maybe even weeks ran together to feel like mere moments or a lifetime balled into one in this place. He wasn't sure how he felt about it yet. He obviously had plenty of time to decide that later. In that moment, though, he was working on finding the soft crying that he was certain he'd heard coming from some thick brush.

It took a couple of clever turns, but Henry managed to duck his remaining tail as he crept up a couple of low hanging limbs of a tree and the boy passed right below him. Henry bit back a laugh as he watched the Lost Boy search and he knew that he would have been fussed at back home. He wasn't sure by who, but one of the adults surely would have given him all kinds of grief for the prank.

When he was sure that his would-be guard was gone he dropped back down to the jungle floor, returning to his search. The crying had softened to a bare whimper at the sound of the trudging teen that had thought he was in the right trail now, but Henry found the culprit anyway. There was a box tucked away in the bushes, obscured by the thick foliage from anyone just passing by. He knelt down on the soft dirt, silent in his movements, and peered in. There was a girl dressed in her nightgown, knees pulled up to her chest, face buried against them, and her thick, blonde hair falling down all around her. Another soft sob escaped her and Henry leaned in a little further so that his face was pressed right up against the bars. "Why are you crying?"

The girl startled, tear-filled blue eyes blinking in the darkness. "Who are you?"

The boy grinned. "I'm Henry. Who are you?"

"Wendy," she answered hesitantly. "Wendy Darling."

Henry tilted his head. That name sounded family - like from a story - but he couldn't quite place it. "Hi, Wendy," he greeted instead. "Why are you sitting in there?"

"Pan locked me up."

"Really? Is it some sort of game?" The girl looked at him like he'd lost his mind and he shrugged. "He plays a lot of games, but they don't seem to be as much fun as he thinks they are. Do you want to get out?"

"I can't. He has my brothers. If I don't do as he says, he'll hurt them."

"Are they in the camp?"

"No. They're far away, but Pan has been watching them."

Henry frowned. It seemed that Pan kept people from doing quite a bit around Neverland.

"How long have you been here?" Wendy asked.

"I don't know," Henry answered with a shrug. "A few days? A few weeks? It all sort of runs together."

She gave him a sad smile. "Yes, it does. I fear that you've already begun to forget, just like the others."

"Forget?" he echoed. "Forget what?"

"About your family."

Henry opened his mouth to tell her that he had most certainly not forgotten anything so important, but Pan's shadow swooped in low, circling around the cage. "You can free her," the shadow said. It had barely spoken to him since he arrived, but those words rang loud and clear and Henry sprang to his feet.

"What about her brothers?"

"They'll be safe if you make them safe."

That seemed like a reasonable enough answer, but Henry had no idea how to go about making people safe whom he had never met and might likely never meet. "How do I do that?"

"The Heart of the Truest Believer can make anything happen in Neverland. All you must do is wish it and it will become so."

"Then I wish it," Henry said firmly. "I believe it."

Henry felt a strong wind pick up around him and he wasn't sure quite what he'd done, but something had changed in the air around him. Magic tingled like electricity and it made him sway for just a moment as it washed over him, leaving him feeling powerful like he'd never felt before. Anything was possible and no one could tell him no in this place. Not even Pan.

The cage door popped open and Wendy came out, looking stiff from her captivity. She blinked at him, surprise lighting her eyes and Henry realized he hadn't even touched it. He'd just willed it to open and it had.

"No one but Pan could open that cage," Wendy managed in an awestruck voice.

"Well he's not the strongest here anymore. I am. I'll protect your brothers, Wendy, and I'll save the island. I won't let magic die here and I won't let Pan hurt anyone else." He could be a hero. He could be Neverland's hero.

All at once the temperature dropped and Henry took a step in front of Wendy. The shadow had gone now and as the boy followed the almost visible path of power he saw Pan appearing in the small clearing, Lost Boys surrounding him. They looked around, all but Felix looking anxious and uncertain.

"What are you doing, Henry?" Pan asked, all the playfulness washed out of him.

"Freeing Wendy," Henry answered without missing a beat. "You can't keep her locked up anymore. I won't let you."

"You won't, hmm?" Pan asked, the smile that perked his lips anything but friendly. He took a step forward. "It's just a game, Henry. A fun game, if you'd like to play."

"I think I would," the younger boy answered, "but I don't think you'll be a very good loser."

"I don't lose."

That belief had kept Pan alive all these years. It had allowed him to take over this island and turn it into a living nightmare. Henry wouldn't stand for it. Not anymore. He _would_ save Neverland from Pan. There was no doubt in his heart about it. "Yes, you do," he said firmly and magic sparked in the air.

Pan narrowed his eyes and took a step forward, but it was as if all the magic in the island reared up against him and he was thrown back without Henry even lifting a finger. He hadn't even thought it, specifically, it had just bent to his will. He wanted Neverland safe. He wanted his new friend safe. He wanted to be a hero.

The teen slammed hard into the ground, rolling as he did, but was up on his feet again with a snarl of fury. The Lost Boys around him stayed perfectly still, watching the literal battle of wills unfold before their eyes. "It's time you learned a valuable lesson, Henry. Peter Pan never fails. I've tried playing nice, but it's time for you to do what you came here to do. To save Neverland by giving me your heart."

"I _will_ save Neverland, but not like that," Henry answered. "I'll save it from you."

Pan lurched forward, fingers stretched wide as he aimed for the younger boy's chest. A light shimmered around Henry, and as Pan's fingers passed through it they began to change. He pulled his hand back to him with a startled cry, but Neverland's magic was already reversing. The light moved up his arm, changing him as it went, and when it was done a grown man stood in his place, scraggly and ill kept. He stared at Henry with wide blue eyes that had lost all their youthful shine. "What have you done?" he demanded.

It wasn't Henry, but the shadow that had once done his bidding, that answered. "Your time is up."

"No! I can still get his heart! I can still be a boy here!"

The argument fell on deaf ears, because if there was one thing Henry knew about magic, it was that it always came with a price. That price washed over the grown man that had once been Peter Pan and his screams echoed throughout Neverland. Henry watched, brown eyes wide, as the magic disintegrated him and left nothing but a pile of ash and and echoed cry in its wake.

"He's gone," one of the Lost Boys Whispered. "You defeated Pan."

Henry was still staring at the ground and he felt Wendy take his hand. "Henry? Shouldn't we go find your family now?"

"Why?"

"So you can go home."

The shadow moved from where it had brought down the island's judgment on Pan and slunk across the soft dirt until it reached Henry's own. Dark, clever eyes watched it, but didn't fight it as it melded there, shifting and changing until, finally, it was one, and it was his. It stood back up flying into the air and beckoned him to do the same. He grinned as his feet lifted off the ground, his body suspended in the air. He didn't need pixie dust. All he needed was belief. "I _am_ home."

* * *

Rumplestiltskin was not fond of cages. When he was young the other boys in the village had made it a sport to think up some of the worst games imaginable. Little Rumple hadn't been fool enough not to catch on pretty quick that most of the nastier games were directed at him and a couple of other boys that were liked less than the games' instigators. It hadn't helped him avoid the dark cellar that he'd been locked in for nearly two full days before they'd found him. Granted, the makeshift cage that they'd locked him in during the Ogres War after he'd broken his ankle hadn't helped clear up the horrible feeling of walls closing in that a closed cage door brought with it either.

Charming had been beating against the cage door next to him since they'd been tossed in, but Rumplestiltskin knew his father too well to think they could escape from the inside. No, that would require magic. The shepherd prince stopped - finally! - and Rumple heard him lean heavily against the cell of the cage next to him. "Still nothing?" he asked

The Dark One sighed. Pan had a firm grip on his ability to reach his magic. He was searching for a loophole, but Neverland made it difficult.

"You okay?"

Rumplestiltskin startled at that question and moved so that he could look through the thick bars of the cage. He caught blue eyes watching him and they actually looked a little concerned. "Yes," he said at last, but he hardly felt it. Pan had been right. Without his magic he was useless. They'd taken Belle, they had Henry, and what good was he? He was locked in a cage until he could either find a way around his father's magic or someone found them.

"So," David drawled and heaven help him, it sounded like he was going to use awkward questions to fill the silence. "What's the story about you and Pan?"

Rumple snorted. "Weren't you listening at all, dearie?" he snapped and watched Charming blink in surprise.

"He's your father. I heard that, of course, but-"

"We came to Neverland to escape his less than stellar reputation when I was a boy and he decided to stay. I wasn't welcome. Too much of a reminder." His voice was sharp and it hid the pain beneath the layers. He didn't want to think about how like his father he'd turned out, even if he was striving so hard to be better. He'd still left Bae. He'd still let him go.

David made a soft, noncommittal noise. Even he didn't know what to say, but Rumplestiltskin supposed he should be grateful for small mercies in the fact that he wasn't pushing the subject.

Distraction came in the form if shuffling feet and Rumplestiltskin pressed his face against the front bars, thin fingers wrapping around them as he watched. Lost Boys shuffled their captive, but the angle that he had was hardly conducive to seeing who it was. It only took one boy moving out of the way, though, and he saw Belle's muddy boots. A rage not entirely born of his curse filled him, pushing the hopelessness aside to make room for itself and his knuckles went white as he gripped the bars. They were shoving her along, and though she had her head held high, she was holding her hand close to her. If they'd hurt her, if they'd laid one hand on her, he was going to soak the ground with their blood.

That's the moment when his curse reared its head, forcing back the whispered idea Pan had put into his mind: _Your magic is gone._ Pan had believed and made it so, but the moment that Rumplestiltskin needed it protect the woman he loved it came to his call. His curse cared nothing for the reason, only the result, and it was cheerful enough to be released even if it was True Love that had won out over Pan and his own brand of magic.

The cage flew apart, bottled power raging outward and Rumplestiltskin stood where it had been. The Lost Boys froze, eyes wide and fixated on him, even as a slow and nasty smile crossed his lips. He didn't say a word, just motioned and they dropped their grip on Belle. She held herself steadily as she walked to him and he positioned himself between the boys and his love. She was still holding her hand close and he frowned. "What'd they do to you?"

"They didn't. Pan did," she answered and touched his arm with her non-injured hand. "Rumple, they're just children. They're not our enemy, not really."

His curse raged almost uncontrollably, demanding blood and revenge for being bottled as it had. For being suppressed, but Belle leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his shoulder. Even through the tough leathers of his clothing True Love washed over him and he felt the rage begin to die just a little. "Bring us Henry," he demanded of the frightened boys and they nodded, scurrying off to do the Dark One's bidding.

A mere flick of his hand snapped the cage door open and David moved stiffly out. "Your magic's back?"

The truth behind why eased Rumplestiltskin down from the raging storm that was still simmering inside his soul. He offered a tight smile. "It would seem I simply needed a reminder of what needed to be done. I couldn't let them hurt her." He turned his eyes towards Belle and motioned for her to show him her injury. "What did he do to you, my dear?"

Her lips were pulled into a frown and she slowly extended her hand. Rumplestiltskin felt his heart stop at the sight of it. "Dreamshade," he managed and she nodded.

"You were looking for a cure when Hook poisoned you."

"Yes," he whispered, barely able to pull the breath into his lungs for that one word. His father had poisoned her. He meant to kill her and for what? A distraction? To keep him from saving Henry?

"Then you'll save me."

Dark eyes blinked, flickering over to meet clear blue. "Yes," he answered and somehow the strength of her belief in him made it so. It had been that strength that she leant him that had allowed him to reach through Pan's lies and to his magic and that strength that would push them through this. "Of course I will."

She smiled and tipped up on her toes, pressing a kiss against his lips. He kissed her back, feeling True Love move between them, but the kiss was interrupted by the sudden chill that moved through the air. It was more than magic, Rumplestiltskin realized when David reacted as well, and he turned towards its source. "What was that?" Belle whispered in his ear.

He wrapped an arm around her and kissed the top of her head. "Nothing good."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I know that this chapter deviated greatly from the original Neverland arc of the show. I'm both nervous and excited to hear your thoughts, so please let me know what you think of this turn of events.

Next Time - Chapter Twenty-Nine: Neverland Makes You Forget, in which Henry forgets, his family has to work together to come up with a plan, and Wendy seeks help from quite a common fairy.


	30. Neverland Makes You Forget

**Chapter Twenty-Nine: Neverland Makes You Forget**

There was something very different in the feel of the magic in the air. It was more than a chill, it was an entire _shift_. The island pulled from Pan as much as Pan pulled from the island and Rumplestiltskin knew what his father's magic felt like. This... This was very different.

David stepped forward, sword drawn. "Is this another trick?" he asked warily.

"I don't know," the Dark One answered with surprising honesty. He'd had personal experience with only two major magical transfers in his lifetime and he'd been on the receiving end of both. The first had been his curse that had left him drunk on power and drowning in darkness, and the second had been the Seer's transfer of her Sight to him. Both times he'd been rather busy trying not to be overwhelmed by it all. He'd never been an outside spectator before, but now that he was, on an intellectual level, he could appreciate the beauty of it. Sparks shimmered in the air and once the waves of immense power began, they were accompanied by a scream that must have reached all parts of the island.

Charming took off in a sprint towards it before the warning to stay put could leave Rumplestiltskin's lips. He growled in frustration, but a quick glance at Belle showed a pleading look to help the prince. "He's a grown man," Rumple tried to argue, but Belle didn't even have to speak. Her look said it all and he felt his resolve crumble. That didn't mean he needed to be happy about it.

Rumplestiltskin grunted irritably as he took his love's injured hand, a spell wrapping around it before bandages appeared perfectly in place. "That'll slow the poison," he told her, "and buy us time."

"Thank you," Belle said and kissed his cheek.

"Don't thank me yet, my dear. Something happened and I don't know what we'll find."

"Can't you See it?"

His lips thinned as he thought. "No. Time stands still here. There is no future to look into."

Belle frowned. "None at all?"

"No," he acknowledged as they started after Charming. She held on tightly to him, one arm looped through his and he hoped she wasn't already feeling the effects of the poison in her system. It had hit him hard and fast, but the wound had been deep and much closer to vital organs. Pan had planned on her death being a slow one, drawn out over weeks and perhaps months.

Belle squeezed his arm. "I love you."

"How do you do that?"

She gave him an innocent look. "Do what?"

"Know exactly what I need to hear at just the right moment."

Belle smiled. "Because I love you."

"And I you," he murmured with a tight smile.

They crested a hill and found David watching a collection of Lost Boys below. Something had certainly happened and as Rumplestiltskin caught a better view he saw what looked like a brawl about to unfold. Several of the boys had gathered around and behind Henry, squaring off against one boy that stood apart. It was Felix, Rumplestiltskin realized after a moment, and he was backing away with a terrified expression plastered across his young and scarred face.

"They're backing Henry," Belle said softly as Rumple's grandson stepped forward. The look on his face sent chills even down the Dark One's spine. He knew what power looked like, and his grandson was soaking it up quickly. Pan, though, was nowhere to be seen.

Felix took off into the woods and the Lost Bits chanted Henry's name. David stood without a word from his crouched position and started down the hill. Rumplestiltskin knew what he was thinking. If he hadn't been able to feel the change, he likely would have beat him down. It looked as if Henry had somehow convinced the boys to side against Pan, but things were not entirely as they appeared, and that alone slowed Rumplestiltskin's steps down the hill behind Charming.

"Henry!" David called, his face breaking out into a grin. He was jogging by the time Henry noticed him and the Lost Bits stepped forward, weapons at the ready.

"Easy, guys," Henry said. "He doesn't _look_ like a pirate."

Charming put on the brakes just in time and Rumplestiltskin paused several yards back to watch the events unfold and hope to anything or anyone that was listening that he was wrong.

David chuckled. "Of course in not a pirate, Henry. I'm glad you're safe."

He stepped forward and Henry matched it with a step back. "Of course I'm safe. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Pan-"

A laugh escaped the boy. "Oh him? He wasn't as strong as he thought. He was hurting Neverland, but he won't anymore."

"What did you do to him, Henry?" Rumplestiltskin asked carefully.

His grandson's dark eyes flickered over to him for the first time and he shrugged. "Nothing. He was a grown up that thought he could stay. Neverland is for children, not grownups. The only grownups here are pirates. You guys don't look like pirates. Why are you here?"

Rumplestiltskin's heart sank and he felt Belle turn a questioning gaze on him.

"We're here to take you home," David said, taking another step forward. "Don't you know who we are?"

"Should I?" Henry asked in innocently.

"I'm your grandpa, Henry," Charming pressed and Henry laughed, rocking back and for the first time they could see that his feet left the ground with ease. He floated there, giggling and rolling in the air.

"That's a fun game if you want to play it, but I don't have a grandpa. The Lost Boys are my only family." He settled his feet back down to the ground and tilted his head. "You guys shouldn't stick around here. Like I said, the only grownups are pirates. We don't play well with pirates." He turned back to the boys that surrounded him and without a word they dispersed, leaving the adults to stand alone in the jungle.

"He doesn't remember us," David managed. "Henry doesn't even know who we are."

"I'd say not," Rumplestiltskin agreed softly.

Belle laid her head against his shoulder and tightened her grip on his arm. "What happened to him?"

Her love heaved a heavy sigh. "Neverland makes you forget," he whispered brokenly.

* * *

It had washed over the whole island. Bae wasn't the only one to feel it, but his connection was strong enough to Neverland for it to send him to his knees. He heard Emma call his name, and he tried to focus. The world shifted and his head was pounding so hard that it made it nearly impossible to focus. He felt her touch his shoulder and he blinked hard against the pressure building inside his head.

"What's happening?" Emma demanded.

"Rumple thinks his magic is connected to Neverland," Regina answered. "Something strange just happened."

"What? Is he going to be okay?"

"Do I look like I know?" Regina snapped.

All at once the pressure released and Baelfire found himself curled on the damp ground. His head still ached and his body felt like he'd been through a nasty car wreck, but the worst of it seemed to be over. He lay there dragging in hitched breaths for a moment before he worked up the strength to sit up. Emma braced him from behind and he tried to offer her a smile, reaching to see if his nose was bleeding as it had the day he'd overextended his magic. His fingers came away clean and he loosed a sigh.

"What the hell was that?" Emma demanded.

She sounded like she was yelling and Bae felt like he'd gone one too many rounds at the bar the night before. "I don't know," he managed raspily. Slowly he waved her off enough to try his hand at getting to his knees and then painstakingly to his feet.

"That was an exchange of power on a great level," Cora mused as he worked his way up.

"You think Gold managed to kill Pan?" Emma asked as she stood at the ready to catch Bae if he started to tilt too badly.

"Not if there was an exchange," Regina said tightly. "Bae, did your father bring his dagger to Neverland?"

Bae froze, still half bent over. "Why?" he asked without really wanting to know the answer.

"You think Pan could overpower Rumple and kill him?" Cora asked curiously.

"I think he's been manipulating all of us since we hopped through the portal," Regina answered.

"So what? If someone kills Gold with his dagger his powers transfer?" Mary Margaret asked and the Dark One's son felt more ill than before.

"Yes, that's how it works," he managed after a moment. He forced himself to straighten. If he focused, he should be able to tell where the burst of power had come from. It was close, he thought, but he didn't trust his senses now. His son was in Pan's hands and his father might be dead, despite all his efforts to change the future. There was really nothing good about Neverland.

Emma wrapped an arm around his middle to steady him. "You good to go?"

"Yeah. I'm good," Bae answered thickly.

"Keep him on his feet. We're going to teleport closer," Regina warned.

"That's a bad idea-" Hook started to warn, but magic swirled sound them, picking them up and putting them back down in a sudden way that brought another wave of dizziness. Now he remembered why he hated it when his papa had done that to him as a kid.

They landed abruptly, a fleeing Lost Boy nearly taking Mary Margaret off her feet. He scrambled, but Killian grabbed hold of him. "Hello, Felix. And where do you think you're going?"

"Anywhere but there," the frightened teen answered, none of his usual cockiness anywhere to be found.

Hook snorted. "What? Pan finally turn on you?"

"Pan's _dead_," Felix managed, wide eyes turning on Bae as if he'd help.

"Did Papa kill him?" he asked, and hated the fact that he sounded hopeful. If Rumplestiltskin had killed Pan, that _might_ account for the wave of power they'd felt, despite what Regina had said. Maybe it wasn't a transfer at all, just a letting go, or perhaps a transfer of magic back into the island itself. It didn't need to mean that the Dark One had died.

"Henry."

"What about Henry?" Emma demanded.

"_Henry_ killed Pan," Felix clarified in a trembling voice like Bae had never heard before.

Regina snorted. "You think we're going to believe you? It's just another one of Pan's tricks. Where is my son? Tell me now before I-"

"He is telling the truth," a familiar voice said. "Pan is dead."

Bae felt a small spark of hope as he turned and saw his papa moving towards them through the brush. He looked worn and upset, but very much alive. Emma released her steadying hold on him and Baelfire crossed the space between he and his father, surprising him as he pulled him him to a crushing hug. Rumplestiltskin let let out a soft _oof_ before wrapping his arms around his son in return. Relief flooded through the younger man. His papa wasn't dead. He knew he couldn't be.

"Bae," his papa breathed. "Are you alright, son?"

"Yeah. I'm good. I was just worried about you."

Several emotions flickered across Rumplestiltskin's face as he pulled back and they finally settled on guilt. Bae couldn't imagine why, but as he looked past him to Belle and David he saw that something had happened that they didn't fully understand yet.

Felix took the moment of distraction to pull away from Hook, darting away. The pirate grabbed for him again, but Rumplestiltskin spoke up. "Let him go. He's of no use to us anymore."

"And why should I listen to you, crocodile?" Hook demanded, but Bae shot him a look.

"We have a deal, Killian."

That caused the elder man to rock back a step and he frowned deeply. "Aye, lad. As long as your father keeps the end you said he would."

"You don't try to kill him, he stops trying to kill you," Bae explained and his father nodded in response.

"Fair enough."

"What happened, Rumple?" Regina demanded. "Where's Henry? You said Pan was dead, but that little twerp was saying-"

"He didn't _kill_ Pan exactly," the boy in question's grandfather said, but his son knew that tone.

"What do you mean by that?"

"He sort of… unraveled him?" Belle offered, her expression hard to read.

"Neverland rejected Pan, but it took Henry in exchange," Rumplestiltskin said, his voice tight and pained.

David looked like the world might end. "He doesn't remember us. He looked straight at me and… He doesn't remember anything but Neverland."

"Then we'll remind him," Emma said. "All we have to do-"

"I'm afraid it's too late for that, dear."

"Papa?" Bae managed, feeling his chest tighten to the point that he could barely breathe. "There has to be something."

"There isn't. Bae, I'm so sorry." He looked up and all the regret and the turmoil rested in those dark eyes. It reminded his son of those days so long ago when he had nothing left to give to keep him safe. Those days right before that desperate decision that had changed both their lives forever. "There's nothing to be done. I've seen this before and-"

"No," Baelfire breathed. "Henry's not Pan. He's not Malcolm." He watched his papa flinch at the name, but pressed on. "I refuse to believe we can't reach him. Think. _Please_, Papa. You promised we'd save him."

"No no, there's nothing," Rumplestiltskin answered and turned away from his son. "I'm sorry-"

Bae's temper flared and he caught the elder man's shoulder and pulled so that he was forced to turn and look at him. He held him there, unwilling to let him squirm away. "That's not good enough. This is Henry. My son. Your _grandson_. He's _family_, Papa!" The roller coaster of emotions that he'd been riding since they'd landed in Neverland - with a few particularly nasty turns within the last bit of time - finally hit the end. They rushed out of him in the angry declaration and left an emptiness behind in its wake. His knees gave suddenly and his papa yelped as Baelfire collapsed. Rumplestiltskin barely caught him before he fell all the way and sank to the ground with him. Bae was trembling in his father's arms and he felt absolutely helpless. "Please, Papa," he begged again. "Please help me fix this."

He heard Rumplestiltskin suck in a ragged breath and he pulled him closer. "Alright, Bae. If there's a way, we'll find it, son. You're right. He's family. Nothing in all the worlds is more important than family."

Bae nodded and felt the arms around him tighten protectively. They'd find Henry and they'd rescue him, no matter what. That's what family did.

* * *

Henry and the other boys returned to the campsite without Felix. It was better that way, in the end, if he was going to take a grown up's side over theirs. They'd all come to Neverland for the same reason: to have fun and to never grow up. Once you were grown up, that was it. End of the line. You would, without a doubt, someday die. Pan - Malcolm, the shadow informed him - had met that end of the line. His time was up and with the transfer of his powers to Henry had reset Neverland to the way it should be. Adults were not meant to grow young again. It had thrown everything out of balance.

The boys had taken quickly to his side, preferring him over their now deceased former leader. They seemed happy enough with the change and Henry promised them a good game, not the kind that Pan had them play at. Neverland held endless possibilities for them and now they could explore and conquer them all. If they could find the pixie dust, he could even teach them all how to fly.

There was only one piece out of place, as far as Henry was concerned, and she sat off to the side in her nightdress, blond hair twirled around one finger as she thought about something much too hard. Henry grinned as he came to light on a rock next to her. "Hi, Wendy."

Wendy startled, blinking at him. "Henry. Hello."

"Why are you still sad? You're free now."

She offered him a smile, but it was still sad at the edges. "I miss my brothers."

"Oh! I forgot about them. You know what? I'll send my shadow for them and he can bring them here!"

"They're grown ups now. Pan didn't have any use for them as children, so he let them age until they were useful and then stopped it."

Henry frowned. Well that wouldn't do at all. "Well, I guess they can't come then."

"I could always go to them. Your parents and grandparents are looking for you, Henry. We can both go back and-"

Henry wrinkled his nose. He didn't know who she was talking about, but he didn't want to go to wherever this _back_ was. Probably somewhere outside of Neverland. "I don't want you to go, Wendy. I'd miss you."

"I want to go home. I want to see my brothers again. Don't you want to go home too? Your family is _here_, Henry. They're looking for you! They love you and they've come to take you home."

Flashes of faces that shouldn't be familiar and yet were crossed through his mind and Henry stood up, shaking his head. "I _am_ home."

"You keep saying that, but it sounds to me like you're trying to convince yourself." With that, she stormed off into the jungle and Henry took a seat back on the rock and watched the space where she'd left. He didn't want to remember, because if he remembered he might have to go, and he'd come to save Neverland. How could he do that if he went away?

* * *

"How're you doing?"

He looked up at her from his place where he'd taken a seat and she thought she might know at least a little of what he was feeling. Not the whole thing with his dad - she'd never get that particular relationship - but she knew the helplessness of Henry slipping away again and again. They'd been so close and then he'd been gone. David's description of what he'd seen worked its way deep down inside of her and tried to eat at the hope that Mary Margaret was so determined she should hold onto. That's why she'd had to step away from her and Neal seemed like the best place to go.

He shrugged in response. "Our son doesn't remember us, my dad hasn't come up with a plan to reverse it yet, and apparently Belle's been poisoned with the same stuff that Hook tried to kill Pop with."

Emma blinked. She hadn't heard that yet. "Pan?"

"Yeah. He may be dead, but he's certainly left his mark on our family."

She motioned for him to move over on the fallen tree he'd made his seat and she sat with him. Neal had always been good at taking whatever life threw at him. He got angry, sure, but she had rarely seen him quite as desperate as he had been when they found Gold, David, and Belle. Neverland might make children forget, but it made him bitter towards whatever he'd experienced here. After her own experience, Emma was pretty sure she couldn't blame him.

"What the hell is this place anyway? I mean, I watched Peter Pan as a kid. How'd they get it so wrong?"

Neal shrugged. "Never saw it."

Emma pulled in a deep breath and leaned heavily against him. "We'll get Henry back," she whispered, pulling on every ounce of optimism that she should have inherited from her parents. "I mean, look at us. Who would have thought that Snow White, Prince Charming, the Evil Queen, and Rumplestiltskin could work together so well to save one kid? Henry's special."

"I know."

"And you're not leaving me alone to deal with them. They may all want to save Henry, but it's a crazy group that our kid calls family," she groused and that brought a soft chuckle from him. "Anyway, if Hook drops one more innuendo my way there's a really good possibility I'm going to punch him in the face."

Neal grinned at that. "I won't complain if you do."

"Are you two done moping over there?" Regina growled, suddenly behind them. "Some of us have been coming up with a way to save our son,"

"Do you have something?" Emma asked as she stood.

Henry's adopted mother sighed, and Gold's voice sounded from where he'd been speaking with David and Mary Margaret, while pointedly ignoring both Cora and Hook. He'd broken down and come clean about his connection with Pan. In that, he'd described how the shadow had been what seemed to allow Pan to become and remain young. From everything that they'd seen, it was the shadow that was giving Henry his newfound powers.

"So if we get rid of it we can rescue Henry, right?" David asked.

"We'd have to separate it from him to kill it," Hook added in. "And going by watching Pan do that to his victims for years: it always ends in death."

Neal perked at that one. "Not necessarily." He turned dark eyes on his father who immediately stiffened under the intense gaze. "In my time you removed your shadow. How would you have done that?"

"What do you mean _your time_?" Hook asked off the the side and Emma reached over and punched him in the shoulder.

"Time travel. Keep up."

He shot her an irritated look and she rolled her eyes. While the pirate captain had proven himself useful before, she wasn't ready to trust him. Especially since Cora held his heart.

Gold thought about it for a moment. "Removing a shadow can be tricky business, but it can be done without causing long-term harm." Emma could see the shop owner's clever mind turning something over and there was a bit more hope in his eyes as he continued. "It would take a tool of immense power to cut him free and we'd have to destroy the shadow immediately after."

"Like the Kris Dagger?"

Neal's father nodded thoughtfully. "That would certainly do the trick."

"Really, Rumple, why would you bring something like that to Neverland with you?" Cora demanded.

"You were supposed to be in Storybrooke, _dear_," Gold growled at her. "You think I'm fool enough to leave it unprotected around you?"

"I'm hurt that you think I'm looking for a way to control you."

"I don't care what you're looking for. I don't trust you."

"Okay, enough," Emma said as she physically stepped between them. She agreed with Gold, but she didn't want another earthquake at this point. "So we can free Henry from the shadow, not hurt him, and kill the shadow, right?"

"I can get him free," Gold agreed.

"And I can kill the shadow," Neal volunteered. "I need something to do it though. I've got a trap here on the island that I can go get."

"And what are we supposed to do? Sit around and wait?" Regina demanded.

"You shouldn't go alone, Bae," David offered and heads nodded all around.

"Too many people moving through will draw attention," Belle pointed out.

"Then we'll split up. Half of us will go get the trap, and the other half will go with Hook."

The pirate looked startled. "And where, if I might be so bold, will I be going?" he asked sarcastically.

"To get the water that will make sure Belle doesn't die of the dreamshade poisoning before we get home," Neal answered easily.

"How do you know about that?"

"Long story. One I'll tell you when Henry's safe and we're all on our way back to Storybrooke."

Emma risked a glance over at her parents and Mary Margaret smiled brightly. She tried to return it and thought she managed at least a little bit of the same optimism. The dark haired woman that had been her friend before she'd ever known she was her mother crossed the space between them. "We've got this," she said with all the confidence of Snow White.

"How can you always be so sure?"

"Because the moment I stop believing that things will be alright is the exact moment I know they won't be. We'll save Henry and then we're going home. All over us."

Emma nodded slowly. They could do this. Henry always said that good was supposed to win, right? They'd just have to make sure of it.

* * *

It was much easier to slip away from Henry than it had been from Pan. Even if the shadow had chosen Henry, the boy wasn't malicious like his predecessor. His games were meant to be in good fun and not to make sure that the other boys stayed in line. He was nice, if a little forgetful, and that didn't seem to be his fault. That was just Neverland claiming its prize. Wendy liked him, and that was why she was determined to bring him with her when she found a way home. It didn't hurt that she'd heard Pan say that Baelfire was Henry's father.

The blonde girl slipped through the overgrown brush as quietly as she could, trying to keep it from snagging her gown. It had been some time since she'd been out this way, but there was only one person on the island that she knew to help her get Henry to his family, which in turn could help her get home. She'd heard a rumour that Henry's father was Baelfire, and if that was true he would certainly take her home with them.

"Stop right there," a voice hissed from the shadows and Wendy froze. The owner of the voice inched forward. "Wendy?"

The little girl tried for a smile and hoped her lips remembered how. "Hello, Tink."

The fairy instantly put away her knife and wrapped her arms around her. "You got away! I knew something terrible had happened and I thought that maybe Pan had finally gotten the Heart of the Truest Believer or something. How did you escape him?"

"Henry helped me escape, but now he can't remember his family. Tink, I need your help."

"Slow down for a minute," the fallen fairy said. "Now what's happened? Who's Henry?"

"Henry's the boy Pan's been after."

"The one with the heart."

"Yes, but it didn't go at all like Pan thought it would. His shadow betrayed him and chose Henry. It reversed whatever magic had kept Pan young and he just… sort of fell apart."

"Peter Pan is dead?"

"Yes."

While surprise flickered across her face, Wendy knew it wasn't sorry. Tinker Bell held no affection for Pan. She'd managed to stay on his good side, for the most part, but they'd never been close friends. She left him alone and he left her alone with an occasional trade between them every now and again. "So what do you need from me?" she asked at last.

"His family's on the island. I need help to find them so that they can get him home. He doesn't remember them anymore and he won't listen to me. He needs to go home or he'll be stuck here for good. You know what happens to them when they're here too long."

Tink sighed. "If he doesn't remember them now, what makes you think that he'll remember them when you find them? Maybe it's best to let it play out. Pan's gone, that's a win in my book."

"He's Baelfire's son."

"Bae? Bae came back to Neverland?"

"That's what Pan and Felix were talking about. I overheard them. Please, Tink, it's for Bae."

The fairy's hard expression softened a bit and she sighed, glancing out towards the threes and her gaze flickered up to the fading stars. "Fine, I'll help you," she agreed, "but that doesn't mean it'll be easy."

"I know, but if he could just remember them-"

"That's not what I mean. It's not just that he's forgotten, it's that Neverland claimed him. Look. How long has it been since we saw a dawn in that sky?"

Wendy looked up, finally noticing the lighter colour the sky had taken on through the trees. "I haven't seen it like that since I first came here."

"Exactly. Neverland may not be so willing to let the Heart of the Truest Believer go."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I'm so glad that it seems that everyone is liking the Neverland arc! I was a little nervous about it, so good to know that it seems to have been a good surprise for everyone :D

Next time - Chapter Thirty: Legacy, in which Rumple has to find a way to get along with Hook as they search for the water that will cure Belle, Bae finds his trap, and Henry's family finds that Neverland may fight to keep him there.


	31. Legacy

**Chapter Thirty: Legacy**

It was a terrible idea. All the way around. First Belle had been quite certain that she should go along with the pirate. They were there for Henry, and anything else was a distraction. While he appreciated her commitment to his grandson, Rumplestiltskin would hear nothing if it. She was not going to be left alone with the man that had attacked her and held a rather nasty grudge against him and might do it again. The promise of good manners did nothing to ease his mind or nerves, so Rumple begrudgingly said he was going with them.

Well that had caused a discussion, of course. The Charmings could do nothing without discussing and debating a subject to an early and rather nasty death. The prince took it on himself to play peacemaker between the long-time enemies and as soon as he was going, his fair princess would hear nothing of it. If David was going, then so was Snow. That's when Rumplestiltskin cut that party short before Cora volunteered.

If she wasn't along with him, though, he could hardly risk Bae, even with Regina there. "Fine," he groused, putting an extra sharp edge to his voice. "Bae, Emma, and Regina, if anything goes wrong on the way-"

"And what do you expect me to do?" Cora snapped, not missing a beat.

"I've heard there are some rather nasty baddies in the woods here. Why don't you go irritate one if them for a bit?" Rumplestiltskin replied with a wave of her hand.

The Queen of Hearts fumed. "How dare you?"

"Well I won't let you near my son, nor am I willing to listen to your worthless prattling as in already shackled to the pirate for the next stretch of time, so do what you want, dearie. As long as you're not in either place, I don't give a damn."

All eyes were on them and it had been quite some time since Rumplestiltskin had seen a flash of hurt flicker through his former lover's eyes, but she masked it quickly enough.

"It's fine, Papa," Bae said from the side. "We'll handle it. We don't have the time to argue."

Cora smirked. "Keep your eye on the goal, Rumple," she purred. "No time to be petty."

"Rumple," Belle's soft voice was in his ear then, easing the tension and smoothing out his temper.

Hook looked past them to Bae and the two exchanged a know glance. "Well, we've wasted enough time," the pirate captain grumbled and started forward.

The party moved in relative silence with the occasional muffled word or two between the Charmings. Belle was moving steadily enough, but she was quiet and there was something off in her steps. Rumplestiltskin didn't like it one bit. Bae had told him that the waters had allowed the poison to become dormant in David's system in his own timeline, but as soon as they left Neverland it would begin again. The cure was tied to the island, so it would be up to Rumplestiltskin to find a more permanent cure once they reached Storybrooke. He was close enough to finding it that it shouldn't be any trouble, but he worried for her. He worried for those few people that he truly loved, because they were all in this hell with him.

"You're quiet," Belle said softly.

"Just thinking, dear," he promised.

"Just worried," she countered knowingly.

"Maybe a little."

"I'm not. I know you'll save me."

He chuckled, even if it was forced. "Such faith in the monster."

She shook her head and leaned against them as they walked. "You're not a monster, Rumple. Someday you'll admit that to yourself."

"Until then you'll keep reminding me, won't you?"

"Of course," she answered just as the pirate captain snorted from a few steps ahead.

All eyes turned on him and Hook raised his good hand in mock surrender. "If I didn't know you as I do perhaps I wouldn't find such sweet words quite so entertaining."

"You're not along to give commentary," David huffed. "Just to get us to where we need to go to help Belle."

Belle tightened her grip on Rumplestiltskin's arm as they both watched Captain Hook and Prince Charming glare at each other. Rumple was quite sure that the blond hero was coming to Belle's defence in a chivalrous act, but he'd much prefer having the charming couple against the pirate rather than with him. It would, eventually, work him into silence. Hook had no real loyalties, after all. He simply went with the wind.

"I know my place, mate," Hook groused. "Cora made damn sure I did."

"Well we're not Cora," Snow answered tightly.

"For a couple of heroes you do keep some rather interesting company, though."

Rumplestiltskin resisted the urge to sigh - and the one to snap his neck - as they stopped at a cliff side. It shot straight up and by the way that the pirate moved, he meant for them to climb it. This time it was he who snorted. "It's up there, is it?"

"It is," Hook answered warily. "The climb's not an easy one, but if you care at all for her you'll make it. Though-"

The Dark One stepped forward, pinning him with the cliff to his back. "Enough," he growled dangerously. "You may play the hurt victim in all of this, but need I remind you that it was _you_ that swept in and disrupted _our_ lives? Now, you will either help save the woman I love or you'll get out of the way. I will warn you, though, that if I should have to remove you from our path that it will be most unpleasant."

Hook looked more than a little uncomfortable to have his enemy so close. "You promised your son that you wouldn't kill me. Does your word mean so little?"

"I promised Bae I wouldn't kill you, but there are many things that may prelude death. Now, have you set any traps for us up there?"

"No."

"Think long and hard on your answer, dearie. Cora may have your heart, but she can't save you if you from me if you bring any harm to my family."

"There are no traps," the pirate answered and Rumplestiltskin believed him. There was an understanding shining in those blue eyes that death would be a mercy should he cross him here.

"Good." He didn't bother with any warning as magic swirled around them, carrying them to the top of the cliff. He set the others down gently enough, but Hook landed hard in his backside, looking both disgruntled and relieved that he'd been out down in one piece. Somehow he managed both expressions at once and Rumplestiltskin filed that away as a small win.

The waterfall in question could be heard but not seen. David strode forward, ready to start hacking away at the vines that covered the entrance.

"I wouldn't do that, mate," Hook said. "Those are the dream shade thorns there. One prick directly from one will send you into shock within minutes."

"How do you know so much about this?" Belle asked curiously.

Hook frowned and Rumplestiltskin saw a thoughtless quip bubble it's way up before he decided against it. His expression turned solemn then. "I lost someone to it. Long ago." He turned towards the Dark One. "If you would? You said you wished to protect your family, so I doubt you'd like to be scrambling to cure your grandson's other grandfather as well."

Rumplestiltskin waved a hand and magic tore and ripped at the vines, pulling them away and revealing the waters behind. He could feel the magic radiating off of it and Belle stepped forward, turning to look at the pirate. "Do I drink it?"

"Yes, that should be best. It's likely in your bloodstream already."

"How are we going to carry the water?" Snow White asked and a canteen appeared in her hand. She quirked an eyebrow but said nothing as she followed Belle into the cove.

"This will work," Charming said softly.

Rumplestiltskin didn't turn to look at him, his eyes fixated on the woman he loved. "It has to," he whispered.

"You really do love her, don't you?"

A small smile perked the elder man's lips. "Yes, I really do."

"Rumple, look!" Belle shouted, nearly tripping over the loose brush at her feet in her haste. She showed him her hand. The veins that had been spreading were retreating back, leaving only the injury itself behind, and even that looked remarkably better with the water flushing through her system.

Rumplestiltskin pulled the newly healing hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to it and she beamed. "Let's go save Henry."

He couldn't help but return the smile as he nodded and pulled them all away to the rendezvous spot they'd agreed on. Belle was safe, Bae would provide a way to trap and destroy the shadow, and they'd rescue Henry. For the first time since stepping onto Neverland he believed it with all his battered heart.

* * *

It was just like he'd left it. The makeshift necessities, the tattered bed, and the marks on the wall that had once told him how many days he had _thought_ he'd been there. It had been tough to tell with the way that night swept in at one point and then just never really left. The longer Pan remained, the more boys he'd brought in to try to fill the void in his heart, the greater the nightmare grew. The skies had darkened and left Neverland in the continuing shadow of night. Finally, Bae had stopped counting the non-existing days.

"This is where you lived?" Emma asked as she looked around the cave.

"Yeah. As much as anyone lives here."

He let her look. Even in his own time he hadn't told Emma a great deal about Neverland. They hadn't had a moment to breathe, much less take a trip down memory lane. Now he sat back and watched as the woman he loved looked over his link to some of the darkest days of his past. She picked up plates, ran her fingers along the chalk drawings, and knelt down in a corner to inspect a makeshift bow that he'd fashioned when he was here.

"Thanks for the tour, but what are we really here for?" Regina asked pointedly, snapping Bae into motion.

"Right." He moved forward and found what he was looking for after just a moment of looking. He'd known it would be here and he knew they could use it to save their son.

"What is that supposed to be?"

Bae's dark eyes turned to Regina and he held the half coconut in his hand up, a quick spell his papa had taught him flickering through his mind, and the candle inside lit. He watched the Evil Queen watch him as he placed the other half over it, the light escaping through the holes drilled into the top.

"Am I supposed to be impressed you made a nightlight?" Regina snarked and Bae rolled his eyes.

"It's not a nightlight."

"They look like stars," Emma offered, gazing up at the lights on the ceiling.

Cora's gaze followed as well. "A map. To guide you off the island?"

"Good guess, but no. The light here attracts the shadow and then you close it in. It's the only way I've found to hold it."

"Then what?"

"Then we dump it into a campfire. It just looks like a shadow. Not sure what it really is."

"Bae?"

Baelfire turned towards the entrance where his name had been called from and the owner of the voice had not been who he had expected. Wendy Darling slipped through, looking exactly the same as she had the night the shadow had dragged him out of her house and off to Neverland. "Wendy," he breathed. In the rush of everything, he'd almost forgotten that she would be on the island.

She looked at him, surprise clear in those eyes. "Baelfire, is that really you?"

A grin took hold. "Yeah, it's me."

She echoed the smile, though not with quite as much enthusiasm. "I'd heard that Henry was your son, so of course you'd grown up, but... Well it's strange to see it now."

"Wendy, did you find him?" an other voice drifted in.

"How many of you people are there?" Regina demanded, but froze in her place when Tinker Bell entered the cave.

The fairy turned her nose up. "Regina," she greeted stiffly, though the name might have been a curse with the way she'd said it.

"Tinker Bell," the dark haired woman answered in turn.

Bae looked between them. "Don't kill each other," he instructed dismissively before turning back to his old friend. "You mentioned Henry. Do you know where he is?"

"Yes, that's why we came to find you. He can't remember-"

"We know," Emma cut in. "We've got a plan, we just have to get to him."

"Can you get us into the camp, Wendy?" Bae asked.

"Yes, I think so."

"The Lost Boys may not have Pan to drive them anymore, but I'd wager they won't let Henry go easily either," Tink said.

"And why should they care?" Cora groused.

"Have you seen the sky? Henry is _changing_ Neverland. They may be children, but they're not stupid," the fairy bit back.

"We just have to make him remember," Bae said, more confidence in his voice than he would have expected. "To do that we have to get rid of the shadow."

"Removing it now will be next to impossible," Tinker Bell said.

"Not with a weapon powerful enough," Regina countered.

"And what in the worlds could you possibly have powerful enough to cut that away without killing the boy?"

"The Kris Dagger."

The blonde fairy went still at this. "They say the Dark One has it."

"Good thing he's willing to help," Bae answered with a shrug.

Tink's gaze swivelled between Baelfire and Regina, landing on the woman she knew as the Evil Queen. "He was _your_ mentor. How did you convince him to help?"

"It's easy enough when the kid in question is his grandson," Bae said for her. "Rumplestiltskin is my dad."

"But you said your father was dead," Wendy said softly.

Bae's lips tugged downward. When he'd met Wendy and told what he could of his story, he'd been quite sure his papa was truly gone. In the near to year that passed between Rumplestiltskin taking on the Dark One's curse and the moment that he let his son go, Baelfire had never been quite sure if his papa had been fully swallowed up and destroyed by the demon that was his curse or if he was somewhere beneath it all. Now he knew that he had been buried but not gone, but a fifteen-year-old boy wandering the streets of London and starving for his next meal - even more so than they'd ever starved under the meager money Rumplestiltskin had made as a spinner - held little hope in anything. He'd been quite sure the curse had killed his father and had simply taken his face. He hadn't been able to tell Wendy that at the time, so he'd said the next best thing: he was an orphan. His parents were both dead. In a way, he'd believed it to be true.

"I thought he was," Bae murmured after a moment. "But we found each other, and now he's helping me to save my son."

Wendy was watching him carefully, as if gaging the truthfulness of his words. She'd been lied to so long here that she must have questioned everything. Finally, a smile made its way to her lips. "I'm glad you found your family, Bae."

"Me too, and when this is over, we'll help you find yours."

"Will you really?"

"I promise." He turned towards the others. "Tink, will you help us?"

"I'll help you, Bae, not her," she answered, motioning to Regina.

Bae sighed. "Fair enough," he murmured. They were all more than ready to get off that forsaken island, even if the nightmare might be receding just a little now. Killian had come on the _Jolly Roger_ and with the beans they still had with them, they could take the ship back and avoid the unpleasantries of riding through an open portal with nothing below their feet. Things were finally starting to work out right, but first, they needed to get Henry.

* * *

The plan was simple enough. Wendy would go in and give the signal when all was ready - they didn't want to barge into the camp if Henry wasn't there - then Emma, her parents, Belle, Hook, Regina, Tink - after the promise of safe passage off the island was agreed on - and Cora would make sure the Lost Boys didn't interfere. It was well understood that there would be no _killing_ Lost Boys that day, only distracting and containing. With the exception of Felix - who was likely still on the run - these kids were mostly harmless without Pan there to egg them on.

Neal and Gold would be the ones to get in close to Henry. Emma was inclined to agree with Regina that she wasn't fond of that part of the plan. Both mothers wanted nothing more than to be right there, but they also understood why it was necessary. There were plenty of Lost Boys to deal with and it was better not to spook a memoryless Henry into flying away where they'd never catch him. Just because she understood it didn't mean she had to like it.

"Everything will be okay," Mary Margaret said from her place crouched next to her.

"I know."

"I know that you know, I just wanted to remind you."

Emma sighed. Sometimes her mother's optimism could be a tad bit overwhelming. "I'm guessing everything worked out okay with the water? I see Belle here and Hook's not dead, so…"

"It was touch and go there a couple times with Hook," Mary Margaret admitted. "He's a real piece of work."

"That's a nice way to put it," Storybrooke's savior groused. Killian Jones was exactly the kind of guy she would have gone for once upon a time. Brash, with more than just a touch of self-worth that bordered dangerously on being obnoxious. He was the kind of guy that wouldn't get past a date or two, but that's all she'd been looking for after Neal had managed to do a number on her already guarded heart. Anything past that risked a dangerous involvement and possible feelings, and it just hadn't been worth it. Now, as she crouched down in the jungles of Neverland, trying to rescue the son she'd given up eleven - nearly twelve - years before, so that they could return to a town formed up by a curse cast by the Evil Queen, Emma thought that the fact that she'd decided to give Neal one more chance might not be the craziest thing she'd ever done afterall.

Emma glanced over to Mary Margaret again. "Are we sure that Regina and…. _she_ will get along well enough to do this?"

"Tinker Belle?" Snow White asked her daughter and Emma frowned.

"Yeah. That's just too weird."

"I think she actually goes by 'Tink.'"

"Not any better."

Mary Margaret chuckled softly. "Right. I'm sure they will. Regina knows how important this is. She wants Henry back just as much as the rest of us do."

Emma nodded and grew very still as she caught sight of Wendy moving through the low-hanging vines and towards the camp. She and Neal obviously had history, but what that history was she had no clue. If they were even going to attempt to make this work, they needed to have a nice long sit down when they got home and he needed to go over _everything_. Emma Swan was about done with surprises. She'd had enough for one lifetime, and she was pretty sure that the son of Rumplestiltskin that had time-traveled to save them probably had a few more tucked away.

"There he is," the savior whispered as she saw her son step out into the clearing of the camp. He was all smiles and laughter, popping up off the ground every now and again as if to prove that he could. Henry was clever and creative. There was no question in his mother's mind that he'd made this place better just by believing in it, but now it was time to go home.

"Let's go get him," Mary Margaret said as they leapt up.

Emma saw Henry's surprised expression and power rocked the island almost instantly. It swept out over his perceived enemies and the blonde was tossed back, landing hard against the soft dirt of the jungle and she heard several of her companions collide in the same way. She sat up slowly, her head spinning and she could feel magic through the air. One glance around showed she hadn't been the only one to be hit hard. Even Cora, with all of her powers, and Regina had been rocketed back. Henry, on the other hand, hadn't even flinched. As Lost Boys surrounded them Emma was quite certain that Pan had had nothing on his great- grandson.

* * *

The power that swept outward from his grandson was all Neverland. Rumplestiltskin felt it bite into him, but he threw up a shield around himself and Baelfire as quickly as he could. Even so, it wasn't until his son added his own power that the stray splinters of magic stopped slicing their way through his defences. They stood against it, both fighting until the whirlwind settled.

Bae radiated power. Being back in this place had done nothing to dampen his new-found powers. In fact, Rumplestiltskin wagered that those powers had been bolstered by his being here. He tried not to focus on it too much as they found themselves on the inside of the camp and Henry looked right at them. There was a funny look to the boy's eyes and his shadow danced just out of step with him.

"Henry," Bae called. "Hey."

"Hi," he answered back, and his voice was more curious than guarded. "You're different."

"Yeah, I guess I am," Rumplestiltskin's son answered softly as he took a careful step forward. Behind him, his father gripped the Kris Dagger in his hand, waiting for the opportunity that would, eventually present itself. "I lived here for a long time."

"But you went away," Henry answered with a frown. "You went away and grew up. Are you trying to make me do the same?"

Bae offered his son a smile. It was slow at first, but then turned into that sort of crooked smile that he'd always had as a boy himself. He'd been well behaved for a father that was always worked to the bone to support them both, but every now and again he'd known how to cause his fair share of mischief. "I want to take you on an adventure, Henry."

That caught the boy's attention. "An adventure? Like to the caves? Maybe Skull Rock? Oh! I know! Mermaid Lagoon!"

"Further," Bae promised. "It's a place full of magic and heroes that would risk anything for the people that they loved."

"Really? Is it part of the out islands?"

"Further."

Henry paused at that. "You want me to leave Neverland? Where is this place?"

"It's home," Baelfire answered and Rumplestiltskin saw his opening. The holding spell washed down around his grandson, freezing him into place. Panic resounded in those brown eyes so like his own, so like his son's, but Rumplestiltskin held firm as he stepped closer to the struggling boy.

Henry looked up at him, the panic subsiding and his voice was very serious as his grandfather approached. "You're going to kill me, aren't you?"

The words struck like a physical blow and the Dark One realized just how easy it would be to rid himself of the boy from the prophecy that had hung over him so many, many years. One slip up. That's all it would take, and Bae couldn't blame him if Henry were simply too far gone. The shadow might fight back anyway. It might rather kill its new favourite toy rather than let him leave. After all, Neverland was bright again. The sun had risen and the birds sang. Children played games and laughed rather than cried themselves to sleep. Pan was gone and Henry had taken his place. The blood ties there only served to strengthen his ability to do so.

"No," Rumplestiltskin breathed out and his hand went to the side of his grandson's face in an affectionate gesture.

"_He_ would have. Your father."

"I'm not my father. I still have a choice to be better than he was, and I will, Henry. I promised Bae."

"Anytime, Papa!" Baelfire called and the winds were picking up around them again with the building pressure.

Rumplestiltskin nodded, hearing the sure sounds of Lost Boys heading their way. He dropped to the ground and slipped the dagger along the edge of Henry's shadow. His grandson gave a startled and pained cry and he shut his eyes, hoping against everything that this would work. It had to.

One last burst of power slipped from beneath his spell as the shadow was cut loose and it sent him rolling as Bae leapt forward to spring the trap.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I got soooo much writing done this weekend. Even with this chapter posted, I'm six full chapters ahead in writing. That's so nice. It means that when work goes crazy and life happens I can still update :)

Next Time - Chapter Thirty-One: For Family, in which rescue attempts are made and alliances are broken.


	32. For Family

**Chapter Thirty-One: For Family**

It all happened so fast, yet it could have been in slow motion up until the point the shadow had finally been cut loose. Bae had listened to his son speak with words he knew weren't his own and a small, dark worry crept into his mind that their plan wouldn't be enough. He couldn't be certain that freeing Henry from the shadow's grasp would work. Could they fight him the whole way back to Storybrooke and could they get him past his new and apparently very protective friends that the Lost Boys had become? These kids had been under Pan's leadership so long that Henry must have looked like the sun breaking through clouds brought on by a violent storm.

"Bae!" his papa's voice sounded from where he'd been flung and rolled across the soft ground and Baelfire leapt into action. He forced his mind to focus. It was a simple spell - one of the first Rumplestiltskin had taught him when they'd begun - and all the feelings rushing through him, driven by desperation, caused the candle to light and the flame to leap upward and almost out of control. He caught it, though, and it caught the shadow's attention. It seemed to know what its fate would be and struggled against it even though it was pointless. Baelfire had seen it all before and the trick _did_ work. They were going home and Henry was coming with them.

The battle that had ensued between Lost Boys and Henry's rather eccentrically put together family paused, almost as if they too were entranced by the flame as the shadow was. It swirled in and Bae held the halved coconut out to it until it was close. Dark eyes caught those lamp-like ones and he wanted to be clear. He'd beaten it again, and this time there was no releasing it back to its master. This time they finished it.

Henry dropped to the ground almost in sync with the top of the trap closing down around the shadow. His eyes had rolled and he lay there sprawled where gravity had taken him down. Bae made sure the lid was on tight before rushing to his son's side. He heard the boy's two mothers and other grandparents coming up behind him, Lost Boys all but forgotten.

"Is he alright?" Emma and Regina asked together.

"Do you have the shadow?"

Bae handed the coconut back to David and there was no need to tell him to be careful with it. Emma and Regina were knelt on his opposite side, Regina carefully pulling their shared son into her arms and magic swept over him, checking for injuries unseen and damage that the amount of raw power that he'd been channeling could have caused an eleven-year-old boy.

Henry let out a soft moan, brown eyes fluttering open sluggishly, and focused on Regina. "Mom? What happened?"

Regina's smile stretched wide and Bae thought he might have even seen some tears in the Evil Queen's eyes. She buried her face in her adopted son's hair and held him close, unable to speak for a moment.

Emma reached forward and took his hand and she wore much the same expression. "Hey, kid. How're you feeling?"

"I'm okay, I think," Henry said uncomfortably. His expression changed slowly from confused to a little unnerved and he squeezed Emma's hand back. "I'm sorry I scared you. I was trying to save Neverland. I guess things went a little too far."

"It's okay, buddy," Bae promised. "We're just glad you're okay."

Henry looked around to where his maternal grandparents were starting to crowd in as well, but then finally found who he must have been looking for. "I knew you weren't going to hurt me, Grandpa Gold. I'm sorry that I said you would."

Rumplestiltskin looked thoroughly uncomfortable with all the eyes suddenly on him and he shifted his weight, thin lips pressed together for a moment until his grandson refused to break eye contact. Finally he tried for a smile. "You were hardly yourself, Henry," he acknowledged quietly.

Regina finally loosened her grip just a little. "We're all just glad you're safe, sweetie."

"I'm glad you're safe too. All of you."

"Is the game over then? Are you going to leave us, Henry?"

Everyone turned, the Lost Boys having been all but forgotten with Henry back, but Bae's son slowly made his way to his feet. Neither mother looked happy to let him, but they didn't stop him, and he made it there on his own without swaying too badly. He was solemn for a little boy in that moment, his dark eyes so much older than they had been before he'd come to this place. "I have to," he said quietly, looking out at them. "My family needs me and I need them."

"We need you too," another boy said. "Look at the sky. Neverland's waking up. You saved it."

Henry's smile returned at this. "I just believed that it was possible and it was. That's nothing more than any of you can do."

"How?"

"Just believe," Henry answered with a smile. "You guys can make Neverland everything that it was supposed to be."

"Will you come back?" one of the littler boys asked and Bae tried to remember his name. He'd always liked that kid. Even though he was a Lost Boy, he'd always been happy and full of life. Toodles. His name was Toodles, Baelfire remembered after a moment.

"Maybe in my dreams," Henry answered softly and Toodles broke free of the others to wrap his arms around the elder boy's middle.

"We're going to miss you."

"I'm going to miss you too."

"Are you taking Wendy back to her family too?" one of the other boys asked and Henry looked to Bae.

"Can we? I promised to help her get home."

Wendy caught his eye from the crowd and Bae offered her a crooked smile. "'Course we can, buddy. Killian's got plenty of room on his ship for anyone that wants to go." He looked over all of them. "Anyone."

"I take it I'm the ride home then," Hook groused.

"Well we're not going to fly back," Cora growled at him and he lifted his good hand in mock surrender.

Rumplestiltskin took a step closer to his son. "Only one thing left then," he said softly.

"Right. David?"

David handed him the coconut back carefully. "How do we kill it?"

"Fire," the former Lost Boy answered and took it over to the campfire that was still burning a few yards away. This was the end, then. The end of so much that had haunted his family over the centuries. With a deep breath he gripped the hard-shelled trap in his hands and tossed it into the flames. They lept up, sizzling and crackling and the sound of the dying shadow could be heard to all corners of the island. Bae let out a sigh and closed his eyes, only to reopen them when he felt a hand in his.

Emma offered a small smile. "Let's go home," she murmured and Henry was beaming behind her.

Bae felt his own smile spread. It was that place, he knew. The one that you just miss. "Home," he agreed. "Let's go home."

* * *

David had never been to Neverland before he was dropped into the ocean off its shores, but now that he had been there he was pretty sure he never wanted to return. Even with the sun shining high over them and all the beauty that could be radiating in place of the dark nightmares that it had been, he thought he'd had his fill. From the looks of it, he wasn't the only one.

Several Lost Boys had decided to go with them and leave the island for good. Many stayed, cheered by the changes and willing to stand watch over the island so that nothing dark or dangerous could make its home there again. There were places to explore, fun to be had, and adventures to live out. They weren't ready to grow up yet. Some, though, chose to leave. The fact that his grandson was among them was really what mattered most.

"Can I tell you something crazy?" Snow asked, coming to stand next to her husband.

"If it's that you want to stay and build a treehouse of our own, I'd rather you not."

She laughed, the sound pulling a smile from him. "No, I don't think I want to stay, but I do think it was fun. I mean, not the whole nearly-losing-Henry thing or Belle getting poisoned, but I've missed our adventures."

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "Really?"

"Really."

"Are you thinking…?"

"I don't know. I love Storybrooke, but we have the beans. Maybe it's worth bringing up to everyone. Maybe now that Emma's found her special someone, she'll be more willing to go too."

David looked over to where Gold's son and their daughter were standing on the upper deck of the ship, Bae showing her something about the pirate ship that the captain himself had apparently taught him to sail as a boy. Henry was with them, watching with wide eyes and excitement as his father explained something that had his full attention.

"What's that look?" Snow asked, and he startled out of his thoughts.

"What look?"

"The one that says you haven't told me something."

David grimaced as he thought back to the Nightmare Forest. "This place just makes me think about how Emma must have felt all those years without us. We didn't even know she existed in that time, but she suffered through every agonizing moment."

"You feel guilty?"

"Don't you?"

Snow nodded and he knew the answer even without asking. Of course she did. It had been the hardest decision either of them had ever had to make to give their daughter up. To keep her would have meant either her death or everyone's eternal suffering. She would have remained an infant for all of time, frozen in those moments after her birth and possibly without her parents anyway. David would have continued to sleep and Snow would have been alone. There had been no good and right decision to be made, but looking back, it didn't make it any easier.

"Of course," his wife answered at last. "But look at her now. She found us against all odds. She's strong and brave and resilient. Life has always thrown us in this direction and that, but we come back from it. We always do. That's what makes us who we are, I think. Emma is the same, even if she's still finding that out for herself." Snow turned that beautiful, optimistic smile on him and tipped up on her toes to press a kiss against his lips. "She has us now and we will never, ever leave her."

Charming nodded, feeling Snow's words bolstered by the power of the island's waters they hadn't yet left. She believed it with all her heart, and no matter where they were, if Snow While believed it, it was bound to come true. Fate didn't dare argue with her.

* * *

It was hard to believe that just a few hours earlier they'd nearly lost their son. It was even harder to believe that only a few months before, Henry hadn't been their son, he'd been the son she was fighting to win over, and before that, he had been some kid without a name or a face to put to it. Just a child that Neal had unknowingly left her with and she hadn't been able to look him in the face because of it. Somehow Emma had known without ever holding Henry as a newborn baby that he would be his father's son and he was. As she watched them she saw that same mischief-promising grin and and the mop of brown hair that would never really be tamed. Their eyes were identical - just like Neal's dad's - and her son had enough love in that heart of his for _all_ of his crazy and somewhat twisted family. He was truly amazing.

"Do you think Captain Hook will let me sail it home?"

"I think you need to know a little more than what one lesson could teach you to sail into Storybrooke," Neal answered with a grin. His dark eyes flickered over to her and Emma offered him a customary glare in return. The smile only grew and he ruffled their son's hair. "Why don't you stay away from the pirate captain for a while and we'll see about sailing when we get home?"

"Okay."

Emma and Neal both watched their son's gaze shift over to where Wendy was standing on the lower deck and speaking with the blonde fairy - Emma would _not_ refer to her as Tinker Bell… it was just too weird - and they exchanged glances "You and Wendy get pretty close?" Neal asked.

"Yeah, I guess. I'm going to go make sure she's okay."

"Does our son have a crush on Wendy Darling from Peter Pan?" Emma managed as they watched Henry take the steps down two at a time as if he hadn't been possessed by a crazy demon shadow that had made him forget everyone that had ever loved him. It was truly amazing how resilient he was.

"That's where the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming draws the weird line?"

She turned a glare at him and took a swing at his shoulder. It didn't have nearly the kick behind it that it should have, but there was something about that grin of his that tried to take some of the irritation out of her. "Listen Mr son of Rumplestiltskin-"

Neal choked back a laugh. "You're really just making my point a little more. It's not so bad. Wendy's a nice girl."

"She's too old for him."

"She's like… thirteen."

"And has been for a hundred years!" Emma argued.

"Yeah, well you didn't seem to complain that I'm older than you."

She rolled her eyes. "By three years."

His grin turned a bit awkward and he took a step back as if he thought she might take another swing at him. "More like three hundred," he offered and it didn't take a lot to cover the distance to knock him in the shoulder again. "Ow!"

"You'll live, old man," Emma grumbled.

"If you'll excuse me," Hook said as he walked up the stairs to the upper deck. "We're about to set sail."

Neal nodded and moved out of the pirate's way towards the railing and he looked up at the sky. It was beautiful, in its own way, but Emma was going to be happy to be home, even if that home was crazy, never-ending-adventures Storybrooke.

He turned towards her, a serious expression plastered onto her face that made her more than a little nervous. "I love you," he said in a rush, as if he'd been working up the courage for it and didn't want to talk himself out of saying it. "I've always loved you. I don't… You don't have to say anything back or feel pressured about it or anything, I just want you to know."

Emma grabbed hold of his jacket that he was wearing and pulled him forward, her lips on his and she felt him stiffen for half a moment before he pulled her in closer. They fit, as silly as it sounded when the thought flittered through her mind. They fit like two pieces of a puzzle and she wasn't sure she ever wanted to let go of that moment. Even so, they had to part eventually and she looked up, finding his warm brown eyes staring down at her. "You seriously haven't figured it out yet, have you?" she asked, and she resisted the urge to hit him again when he gave her a blank look. "I love you too," she she said instead. "I always have."

* * *

Belle took another sip from the seemingly never-ending canteen that Mary Margaret had filled for her on the island. The Charmings, as Rumple called them, were standing at the bow of the boat, ready to toss a magic bean into the water so that they could start their journey home.

"Far away lands and adventure," her love murmured from her side. "Was it everything you dreamed of?"

"Well, I do think that we should leave the poison bit out next time," Belle answered with a smile.

Rumplestiltskin frowned. "I'll have the cure in no time when we get home. All it really needs is one more ingredient and that's in the safe at the shop."

"I have no doubt that you'll save me," Belle answered and leaned up against him. It felt good to be so close. "Rumple?"

"Hmm?" he murmured distantly. Apparently he was finally relaxing some as well with the way he was leaning back.

"Henry wasn't your undoing."

He perked at that, moving so that he could look her in the eye. Those clever, dark eyes blinked at her, recognition of the fact showing in them. "I suppose not." He paused, glancing back around to where his grandson was chattering away with the little girl they'd picked up from Neverland. Wendy, Belle thought her name was, and she seemed perfectly happy to listen to him go on and on about whatever he was talking about. "I would have saved him anyway."

"I know. I always did."

"I didn't," he admitted softly and Belle snorted, turning her best glare on him.

"You may not have been able to admit it to yourself, but I know you, Rumplestiltskin. You have a few rough edges and there are many, many times that those that have hurt you before have made you afraid to love, but if there's one thing that I know it's that you'd do anything for your family."

"Henry _is_ family," he agreed and leaned against the railing. "How is it you have so much faith in me?"

"I know you better than you're willing to know yourself," Belle answered cheerfully.

"You guys ready?"

She glanced back and Baelfire met her smile with a grin of his own. He stepped to his father's other side and Belle noticed how he took hold of the railing. His relaxed posture hadn't lasted long as they inched closer and closer to their method of travel, his knuckles white as they gripped hold of the railing and eyes fixated on the waves ahead of them. "Rumple?"

"I'm fine," he said tightly and the bean was tossed out. Nothing happened for a fraction of a moment, but then slowly, as if on a delay, the water began to swirl and a whirlpool grew wider and wider, opening up the ocean to swallow them and take them to a different land. Belle reached out and touched her love's hand, covering it with his own. She didn't let go as they sunk beneath the waves and she didn't let go as the air seemed to simply disappear around them. It was better this time, she thought, with something solid under their feet, but the sensation was still gut wrenching and Rumple grabbed her hand in the last second as they sailed through the boundaries of space.

* * *

It left him feeling ill, and though he wasn't sure exactly when he closed his eyes against it, he forced them open as soon as he felt the gentle rocking of a ship on the ocean. They'd made it through, and a quick inventory showed that they were all there. No one had been thrown overboard and no one had been left behind. His family and those they cared about were safe, and in the end that's what really mattered.

"We did it, Papa," Bae said from his side. "I came back to make sure you survived and that our family wasn't torn apart. Pan did all that before, but he can't hurt us now."

A relief flooded through Rumplestiltskin like never before and he glanced over to Belle. She offered him a knowing smile. She'd told him he could change his fate, and together they had. It had taken all of them, but they'd saved Henry and Rumplestiltskin still lived. It was more than he'd dared to hope for.

"So what's up with the beans?"

The question caught him off guard and Rumplestiltskin blinked. "Up with?" he repeated rather stupidly.

Bae quirked an eyebrow in a way that told his papa that he wasn't accepting anything less than an answer, even if Rumplestiltskin wasn't entirely sure what his son was asking. Perhaps he simply didn't want to know.

They stared at each other for a minute before Baelfire sighed. "I've seen you near a magic bean three times now and every time you get this wide, panicked look."

"Ah," he acknowledged softly, even if he didn't really want to. He didn't want to explain to his son exactly why he was so afraid of that whirlwind that opened the ground and swallowed up all hope. That's all he'd seen when Bae had lead him through the woods so many years ago, a bean clutched tightly in his hand, and had called the deal that they'd made together. The only way he'd finally followed through into Neverland this time was because Bae had pulled him.

"It has something to do with when you were a kid, doesn't it?"

Rumplestiltskin let loose a breath. His son knew him better than he had thought. "I must have told you. In your timeline."

Bae grinned at him. It was that grin he'd always given when he was young that told his papa he thought he was being exceptionally clever. In most cases he was. "No, but I can put the pieces together."

His father pursed his lips together and thought for a moment. A quick glance told him that Bae and Belle were the only ones within earshot. "When I was a boy my father and I first traveled to Neverland by using a magic bean," he confessed slowly. "The shadow took me away at his bidding and he stayed."

"I did know that part," Bae answered quietly. He reached forward and Rumplestiltskin took the hand he offered. "You're not him, you know that, right?"

The question caught Rumple off guard a little and he tightened his grip on his son's hand. "Most days. I know that most days."

"You've always been better than him, even in your darkest moments. You came looking for me."

Thin lips tugged into a smile and Bae leaned forward, their foreheads touching. "I'll always come for you, Bae," Rumplestiltskin promised, his voice breaking as he did. "Whatever it takes, I promise."

"Same," his son answered. After a moment the younger man cleared his throat and his papa reluctantly let go. "Before we get into port," Bae said softly, his gaze shifting over to Cora who was having a less than tender moment with her daughter. "Killian said something to me in Neverland. He said that Cora made a deal with Pan for Henry. I know Pan's dead, but-"

"But if she were willing to once," his father agreed.

"Have you told Emma or Regina?" Belle asked.

"Not yet. I don't want to stir up trouble if there isn't any."

"Fair enough," Rumplestiltskin answered, eyeing Cora suspiciously. She had never been as keen on keeping deals as he had and could be found double crossing even her most loyal allies if it suited her end goal. "I'll handle it."

Bae nodded. "I'm going to go check on Henry. Make sure he's doing okay."

Rumplestiltskin nodded and turned back to the front where they were coming in to the dock. Storybrooke had never seemed quite so welcoming before, and whether he deserved it or not, he felt like he was coming home. His family was whole and safe - Cora would be a looming threat until she slipped up, but with any luck it would be a minor one compared to what they'd all just endured - and they could go about their lives. No, the Dark One was well aware that he didn't deserve it, even with the decision to be willing to give his life for his grandson, but maybe - just maybe - they could actually settle down enough to enjoy their time together.

"Rumple? A word?" Cora's familiar voice sounded even as the ship eased up to the dock and they made ready to disembark.

Belle squeezed his hand. "She can't hurt us anymore. Not if she wants to repair her relationship with Regina."

Rumplestiltskin snorted softly. "Such optimism, my dear."

"If you're going to be in the same town you'll need to have something of a truce between you. To keep Henry safe, if nothing else." His love smiled and kissed his cheek. "I'll meet you on the docks."

He tried not to grumble too much as he plastered a truly fake smile on. "Cora, what can I do for you?"

Her expression was anything but friendly. "What right did you think you had telling Regina about Zelena?" she demanded.

Well that certainly hadn't been what he was expecting. Apparently their conversation had been a bit more lively than he realized. Leave it to Regina to bull her way through a delicate subject at the worst of times. "I'm sorry, did I let your secret slip, dear?" he answered, his voice not as nasty as it could have been, but certainly not kind. "It did seem like something you might have mentioned to the one you decided to keep."

"Don't play that game with me. You knew well enough I'd never told her."

"Well then, I'd say I did you a favour. It would have come out sooner or later, and better _not_ when they met face to face, hmm?" He brushed past her towards the ramp, happily surprised that the magic worked in Neverland on his ankle was holding even now that they were home.

"My family affairs are my own, Rumple," the Queen of Hearts hissed.

"And mine are my own, but you decided to stick your nose into them, didn't you?" Rumplestiltskin returned, turning at the top of the ramp to level a glare at her that was backed by the full darkness of his curse fueled by the love he held for his family.

"Henry is Regina's son and _my_ grandson."

"But he's not a bargaining tool." Rumplestiltskin watched her expression change slowly as she realized what he meant. "That's right. I know all about your deal with Pan. I haven't told Regina that one, and I won't _if_ you'll behave yourself. I'm tired of looking over my shoulder."

"I won't hurt Henry. You don't need reassurances."

"I think that I do."

"You used to trust me, Rumple," she whispered, her voice sounding more hurt than he believed her to be. He knew her. He knew how thickly she could lay it on with her heart beating in her chest.

"I did trust you once, just as I loved you once as well," he stated as he started down the ramp to where Belle and Bae were waiting for him. "Thankfully that's all in the past now. If you'll excuse me."

He heard her snarl something nasty from the deck of the ship even as he hit the dock below. He ignored her until he felt the sharp crackle of magic racing through the air. He lifted a hand, catching the burning ball of fire and tossing it away easily. It hit the waves below and sizzled out of existence.

"Don't walk away from me, Rumple," she growled from her place. "This conversation is _not_ over."

"It most certainly is. Enough, Cora. One last lesson for you, dear. Learn to take defeat gracefully. You can't have it all."

"I tried to give you one more chance, Rumple, but you always were a stubborn, single-sighted fool."

She had a bag in her hand and everything inside of Rumplestiltskin screamed out a warning. He _had_ been a fool to think that the fireball was the best a spurned Cora had to offer. He didn't react fast enough, though, and he knew exactly what it was as it hit him.

Rumplestiltskin had taught her that layered spell, even if she'd never had the strength to cast it on her own. Coupled with dark fairy dust it hit him hard, working through his own ever-present defences and picking them apart until the spell could worm it's way beneath them. The spell spread through him and he could feel it take hold of him from the inside, ripping and tearing it's way through him. Somewhere in there the momentum of the spell had picked him wholly up off the ground and taken him crashing back down with such a force that he was certain that he heard bones breaking. He lay against the splintered wood and something in the back of his mind promised that the numbness that he was feeling wouldn't last. The pain would come. He remembered the spell well and there was no mercy within its folds.

As the voices of his family calling out to him grew louder the pain rushed in, filling him up until he choked on it. His curse, crying out for self-preservation against the raging sorceress, demanded that he get up. He had to fight, but knowing and being able to follow through with action were two different things entirely. The best he managed was a struggling, wheezing sound that might have been a groan. Cora came slowly into focus and she was smiling.

"Thank you, Rumple," she said simply and he thought he was losing his mind. Or maybe she was.

"What?" he managed and he hated that his voice sounded so weak.

"For reminding me why I tore my heart out in the first place. Love is weakness and weakness is not something I can afford."

Rumplestiltskin choked against the plea that rose up against what he saw happening. There was no hesitation as she reached in and ripped her heart out once more, a triumphant smile on her face as she turned her eyes on the people that she had almost called her allies in Neverland. "I think it's time for a change of leadership in Storybrooke. The next time we meet I will see you on your knees before me." Her eyes flickered to her daughter. "Regina, dear, this will be your only chance. Choose wisely which side you'll take."

Regina straightened her shoulders and took a step in front of her adopted son. When she spoke, her voice was tight but firm. "No, Mother, _you_ have one more chance. Don't do this."

Cora barked a laugh, the sound hollow and bitter. "Very well then. Come along, Captain."

Hook didn't have time to argue before he was caught up in the same dark red smoke that surrounded Cora and then they were both gone, leaving the others behind.

Rumplestiltskin was sure he heard Belle call his name and he knew he needed to get up. She was counting on him. If he didn't put together the antidote before the waters from Neverland ran out she would die. He struggled to force himself up, but even the barest movements sent spiking pain through his body and everything was plunged into darkness before she even made it to his side.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I really hope there are no blaring mistakes in this chapter. I woke up at 3:30 this morning and only dozed a bit before I had to get up for work at 6. If you see anything, feel free to let me know. My brain's starting to shut down on me by this point in the day.

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Two: Heroes and Villains, in which it's a race against the clock to save Belle and Cora finds a useful tool with which she may enact her revenge.


	33. Heroes and Villains

**Chapter Thirty-Two: Heroes and Villains**

Henry had read about heroes and villains his whole life. He'd seen both in play even in his short years, but he was sure he'd _never_ seen anyone like Cora. Even after she was gone Regina had him pinned behind her as if she thought it might be a trap.

Belle was the first to break free as soon as Cora had vanished. She fell to her knees next to a far-too-still Rumplestiltskin and Henry could hear her call his name again and again, fear working its way into her voice. Baelfire was right behind her and Henry tried to slip around his mother to go too.

She caught hold of him and pulled him into a hug with his back to his grandfather. "Not yet, Henry," she whispered.

"Is he okay?"

"I don't know."

Henry felt a chill settle over him at the tone of Regina's voice. She was afraid. His mom wasn't afraid of anything. He hugged her back for a moment, feeling her tighten her grip on him in turn. "Please, Mom," he whispered. "He's my grandpa."

"I know, honey. Just... not too close. Let your dad and Belle have some space, okay?"

He nodded and as he turned he saw more people had gathered. There had been a small group to welcome them when they'd come from the ship, but now those people stood around murmuring. Was the Dark One dead and had the Queen of Hearts killed him? They didn't dare move in too close and Henry was able to slip through with Regina at his heels. Mary Margaret and David stood back with the crowd, though Emma had started to inch towards Baelfire.

Henry caught sight of his grandpa and his eyes were still shut. Though it was difficult to see at the distance they'd been at, as he inched closer he could see where the leathers he'd worn during their trip to Neverland had been ripped and torn by the spell. Bae's hand was pressed down against one wound and Belle was smoothing back grey-streaked hair. Before he knew it, Henry was dropping to the dock next to his dad.

"Hey," Bae greeted in a shaky voice. Henry could see the fear his dad was trying to push back for his sake and he swallowed hard. This was his fault. He was his grandfather's undoing according to the prophecy. He didn't want to be, he didn't mean to be, but somehow his very existence had been foretold to end Rumplestiltskin's. His grandpa had been protecting him there and now Cora had hurt him. It was his fault.

"Is he going to be okay?" Henry managed after a moment.

"Of course he is, buddy," Baelfire answered.

Rumplestiltskin let out a choked off cry as his son pressed a little harder against the wound, trying to slow the flow of blood. His eyelids fluttered for a moment, as if he were dreaming, before slipping open very slowly. His dark eyes gazed straight up at them, unfocused and full of pain.

Henry felt like time had stopped again as his grandpa struggled to focus. He blinked several and Belle's name left his lips in a whisper. "I'm right here," she promised.

He finally managed to look at her and his expression softened just a little. "Hey," he greeted raspily.

"Hey yourself," she murmured back, her lips pulling into a small smile.

"Cora?"

"She's gone. We're okay. We're safe."

Henry saw Belle and his dad exchange looks at her words, but Grandpa Gold seemed to accept them at least for the moment.

"Papa," Baelfire whispered, bringing his father's gaze around to him. "Can you heal this?"

Rumplestiltskin snorted softly, but whatever quip he'd been ready to respond with was cut off by a soft moan of pain. "Yes," he breathed out eventually and reached a trembling hand out. Bae took it, his own covered in blood and Henry tried not to think about how pale his grandpa was growing. "Don't worry, Bae," he whispered, his accent thick and drowsy like he might slip off again. "My curse won't let me die."

"Even here?" Belle asked hesitantly.

"Even here," he answered. "Help me to the shop?"

"Are you insane?" Baelfire demanded. "Hospital." The glare would have shut most anyone else down entirely, but the younger man met it. "The house at the very least."

Rumplestiltskin shot his son a frustrated look. "The final ingredient I need for Belle are at the shop," he answered, breathless by the end of the sentence.

Baelfire glanced over to Belle. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, I think."

"I can get it," Henry volunteered and all eyes turned on him. "What? Mom can come with me if you think it's dangerous. Both of them, if they want."

"What do you need, Rumple?" Regina asked from Henry's side.

He was gripping Bae's hand again as a wave of pain washed over him and it took him a moment to answer. "Small, unmarked vial in the safe behind the picture frame. Henry'll have to open it."

"I think that I can-"

"Blood magic, dear," he said through gritted teeth.

"Right." Regina took Henry's hand in her own and he tried for a smile.

"We'll see you at the house, Grandpa."

Rumplestiltskin gave a soft acknowledgement and Regina pulled him towards the shop. Behind them Henry could hear the questions already being asked. What was Cora going to do and how could they stop her? The questions blurred together, but there was only one that mattered to him at the moment. "He'll be alright, won't he, Mom?"

"Your grandfather is much tougher than he looks."

It wasn't a vote of confidence, but Henry had to give her credit: she wasn't lying to him.

* * *

Regina felt Rumplestiltskin's wards wash over them as she and Henry entered the shop. Emma had opted to help Baelfire get his father back to the house while Snow and David did what they could about crowd control. Regina had thought people had gone crazy when the curse broke and their memories flooded back, or when magic had come to Storybrooke, but apparently enough of them remember her mother as the woman who kept hearts as trophies. Not that Regina hadn't as well, but with Cora back and Regina having publicly stood up against her mother it didn't seem to matter as much. The Queen of Hearts was the threat, and strange as it was, the Evil Queen had been siding with the heroes as of late.

"He said it was in the safe behind the picture, right?" Henry asked, darting to the back of the shop without delay.

"Yes, the one there in the middle," Regina answered and he seemed to know just where to go. She watched him, mind wandering back to her former teacher. He'd taught her a great many spells over the years, but she was certain that he'd taught her mother more. Spells such as the one that Cora had used to attack him with were powerful - often more so than a simple human sorcerer could manage. In those cases the sorcerer - or sorceress, in Cora's case - had one of two options. They could search to see if the spell had been written by a more powerful sorcerer onto a scroll - much like Rumplestiltskin had done so that Regina would have the ability to cast the Dark Curse - to channel some of their own power into the spell, or they could find something to amplify their own power. Cora, obviously, had chosen the latter. No one would have been fool enough to write _that_ particular spell down.

Where Cora had gotten the dark fairy dust, Regina could only speculate. If it had been from Neverland, that meant she'd made some sort of deal with Pan, and while Regina wished that she could defend her mother against such an accusation, she couldn't find it in herself to do so. Not after what had happened that day. It would have taken most of the fairy dust just to eat through Rumple's personal shields that he - or his curse - kept around himself.

His healing worked differently in Storybrooke, as far as she could tell, versus how it had worked in the Enchanted Forest. Not that she'd had a great many chances to see him injured in the Enchanted Forest, but she'd managed to land a thin cut or two now and again. It had healed almost instantly. She had only seen one time that he _should_ have been more injured than he had been and that had been by one of her late husband's archers. The arrow had gone clear through him from the back and he'd just looked down at it as if it amused him. The wound had been healed by the time that he had used magic to pull it out.

Here, though, Regina wasn't sure exactly how it worked. The Land Without Magic was most certainly different and he'd had a terrible go around with Hook's poisonous escapades. Granted, from what she understood, the dreamshade had somehow cut off his connection to his magic, but that couldn't have been it. He hadn't sprung up from the ground laughing at Cora's would-be shocked face when she'd dealt her blow, nor was he dead from it as any of the others might have been, so Regina was inclined to think that his healing powers lay somewhere in between those of a typical human sorcerer and those of the Dark One of the Enchanted Forest.

The spell her mother cast had been a vicious one. Regina hadn't needed to be on the receiving end to know that. Once it had worked its way to him it would have ripped him to shreds from the inside out. Much to his irritation, she knew, Rumplestiltskin's body was very human in the Land Without Magic and it would have been his curse that kept him alive through it. She'd been close enough to see the damage and it was amazing that he'd managed to come around to consciousness, much less giving instructions.

"Is this it?" Henry asked and held up a vial.

"That's what he described," his adopted mother agreed as she took it and rolled the small bottle between her fingers. It was an inconspicuous little thing, just like Rumple liked it. He didn't dare hide something so important in an obvious container. Even if someone were able to break through his blood magic locks they'd have never taken this little thing.

"Will it save Belle?"

Regina tried for a smile. "Henry, your grandfather is likely one of the most talented sorcerers from outer land. If he says this will save Belle, it will."

"Is he more talented than you?"

The Evil Queen pursed her lips together. "As much as it pains me to say, in some ways yes. He is."

"That's okay," Henry said with a grin. "You're both on the same side now. You'll work together."

"And what side is that, sweetheart?"

The smile only grew. "The heroes' side."

Regina nearly laughed. "Don't let Rumplestiltskin hear you say that. We'll never hear the end of it."

"But it's true, isn't it? You guys see fighting for the good guys."

"We're fighting for our family, Henry, and if that puts us inline with the heroes, then so be it. Don't ever forget, sweetheart, we're fighting for _you_."

Her son wrapped his arms around her and Regina felt a rush of warmth from the embrace. "I know. I love you guys. All of you."

She kissed the top of his head. They would protect their crazy little family, no matter what.

* * *

Her things were in her daughter's house and vault. The same daughter that had betrayed her on that very day. It set Cora's blood boiling in her veins even as she appeared deep below her late husband's crypt and promptly hijacked Regina's wards. The girl had most certainly learned all that she knew from that arrogant imp. Blood magic would keep people out... Except for family, and for family it simply made it easy to manipulate. Almost instantaneously Cora had found all the right strings to pull, all the layers that Regina was so damn proud of herself for, and she'd twisted them in on themselves. They turned and they unraveled, sewing themselves back into different places and winding through into different patterns. Let that thankless, foolish girl try to break in now.

Cora had endless possibilities on how to handle these pests that had all gathered in Storybrooke and stolen her daughter away from her. She wasn't fool enough to think that she'd killed Rumple - she needed his dagger for that - but she had taken their most powerful player out of commission for a while. That allowed her time, and with time she could set herself up to be invincible. She needed allies. She already had the pirate, but she needed others that she could trust. She _could_ bring Regina to her side, if she chose. She'd prepared for the worst when she'd come to this land and had brought with her a curse that would at the very least make her daughter _think_ that she loved her. If Cora could pull her away from those bumbling hero types, Regina would remember where her loyalties truly lay. The curse required the heart of the person the caster hated most and she certainly had her pick there between Eva's daughter and granddaughter, that little flower that had somehow warped Rumple so badly, and perhaps even the brat that Regina had adopted. He was of Eva's line too, and none of this would have been an issue without him.

"I don't mean to pry," Hook said from where she'd put him down in the vault with her, "but that was a confident threat you gave there. While I'm not complaining on the fact that the Dark One may be dying, how do you plan to subjugate a whole town to you?"

The rage that had been building inside if her washed outward, slamming into him and he was thrown into the shelves in the far side of the room. Cora stalked across the space between them with the grace only a queen could muster and nudged him with her toe. He looked up, grimacing as he did. "How I do it is none of your concern. Your concern, pirate, is to do as I wish. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," he managed.

"Wonderful," she answered and glanced past him. A box had been knocked open when he hit the wall next to it. While closed, it had been subdued, but once opened it radiated power. It was the same magic that ran through the very structure of Storybrooke, and as Cora reached in and took the small scroll she could see Rumplestiltskin's own small, neat handwriting. It was his curse. The Dark Curse. The Curse to End All Curses that Regina had cast to seek her revenge.

A dark and wicked smile touched Cora's lips. She didn't want Regina, she decided. She wanted to take everything away from her. From all of them. She'd given her daughter a chance and she'd turned it down. She'd live to regret it, certainly, and she'd join the others on their knees before her. Rumple had told her not to let a thing get in her way, and now she'd reached it. Eva's bloodline would bow to her before she spilt that blood they shared across the stones and left those that had once loved them to mop it up.

* * *

"I'm _fine_, Rumple," Belle said for at least the fifth time in ten minutes. Even her endless patience seemed to be wearing a bit thin, but Emma was starting to think that Gold's constant worry over if the water was still working or not was his way of focusing on the pain he was in. She'd been watching him carefully, noting the way his brows knit together and his jaw clenched just before asking again. Belle probably knew it too, and that's why she'd refrained from telling him to stop asking.

"Any word from your parents?"

Emma glanced over to where Neal was walking into the room, still drying his hands from where he'd scrubbed his father's blood from them. He looked rattled, even if his voice didn't sound it. Even though he had spoken to her, his eyes had immediately gone to his father who was lying on the couch. They'd planned to get him upstairs, but by the time they'd gotten him to the house he'd been pale and drawn. They'd settled him into the couch and found that his magic really was working to heal up the multiple wounds he'd suffered. It hadn't finished its work, though, and Neal didn't appear to have the same trust in it that his father did.

"Yeah. They're getting people inside their homes and the Dwarves are going back on Cora watch, apparently."

"That's a good way to get them killed."

Emma shrugged. "They're good at this stuff. I don't know."

He tried for a smile. "You're good at it too. You just don't give yourself enough credit."

"I don't know. I guess I just figure if I was good at the whole savior thing that we'd get to take a breath every now and then, you know? All these terrible things keep happening."

"They really do," he agreed softly.

Emma had always been bad at comforting people. She hadn't had a great deal of comfort growing up, so figuring out how to provide it to others had proven a challenge. She watched him watch his father and Belle and just once she wished she could have faith that their crazy little family would be okay. She glanced over to Neal and was certain he was thinking the same thing. Mary Margaret would tell her to have faith. If she didn't, that's when things really would become hopeless. Carefully, slowly, she reached over to him and their fingers wrapped around each other, fitting perfectly and she felt him relax just a little.

"I don't think I can lose any of you again," Neal admitted softly. "I mean, I know he'll be okay, but... He can be such a stubborn bastard sometimes. He always has been."

Emma felt her lips twitch upward. "Not like his son at all."

"Nope. Didn't inherit that trait at all," he agreed with a small smile of his own.

"Got it!" Henry's voice filled the whole house as he came bursting through the front door and Hold perked from his place on the couch.

"We're in here, kid," Emma called before the injured shop owner decided to try to call for him.

Henry came around with all the determination of an eleven - almost twelve - year old as he carefully handled the vial even in his haste. "Grandpa Gold, I have it. We can save Belle."

Belle smiled sweetly at him and even Gold's lips tilted up. "Well done," he answered tiredly.

"Now what?" the boy asked.

"You'll set that down there," Gold said, motioning to the table, "and go into the basement to get the rest of the mix. It'll be on the far shelf on the very bottom. A sort of brownish mixture."

"Okay."

Regina hovered next to the couch, not quite willing to ask but seeming to want to know how her former teacher was doing. He smirked at her. "Takes a bit more than your mother to kill me, dearie," he said, but the usual bite was left out of his voice.

"She'll go after your dagger."

"She won't get it."

They watched each other for a moment, each studying the other until Gold began to chuckle. Regina looked a little offended at first until he spoke. "So how did it feel?"

Now she just looked annoyed. "How did _what_ feel?"

"To stand up to your mother, of course."

A slow smile spread and Emma had seen that smile more than once. It was calculated and usually saved for a victory. "It felt glorious."

"So I take it we need not worry ourselves about you?"

"If the choice is Mother or Henry, I'll choose Henry every time."

"I knew you would."

"Now what, Grandpa Gold?" Henry called as came barreling through the old house.

Gold pushed himself up a little against the pillows that were propped under him and motioned to his grandson. "Now you get to help your father mix the two together to make the antidote."

"Say what?" Neal asked immediately. "I can't, Papa. I've never... This is Belle's _life_. What if I do it wrong?"

"You won't. I know you won't, and I can't right now. My hands aren't steady and yours are. Come here."

Emma squeezed his hand before releasing it and he moved hesitantly forward. Neal had always been absurdly clever. He picked up on things faster than anyone - other than perhaps their son - she had ever known. She didn't count herself an expert at magic by any stretch, but the few lessons that Regina had given her in Neverland had been some of the hardest things she'd ever tried for in her life and Neal seemed to pick it right up as if he'd been born to wield it. Funny, because from what she understood from the bits and pieces that she heard, he had been _very_ against it at one time.

"It's alright, Bae. I'm sure you'll do perfectly," Belle said from her place on the floor next to the couch. She'd knelt down there some time ago, but now that Emma took a closer look she didn't think that the librarian looked ready to stand even if someone had asked her to. She'd been steadily sipping on the water brought with them from the island, but it could only last so long. She needed the antidote now, and if Gold couldn't make it then someone needed to.

"Maybe Regina should do this," Neal said, giving it one last try and his father shook his head slowly, but didn't look ready to give an answer as to why.

Instead he inclined his head just a little towards his grandson. "Bring the vials here, Henry?" he asked, his voice softer than before and he was gripping Belle's uninjured hand.

Henry brought the potion he'd fetched from the basement closer and picked up the one from the shop as instructed. "They don't look like they should go together," he murmured, looking at them both. One was the colour of watered down mud, murky and thick, while the other was blue, much like Belle's eyes.

"It does happen that way sometimes," his grandfather remarked softly and he motioned for Henry to hand the two potions to Neal who took them very hesitantly. "Five drops of the blue into the brown. No more, no less," Gold told him.

"What if I put too much in?"

"Then it's ruined, but you won't. You've always had steady hands, Bae."

Neal smiled a little at that, like it was an old joke between them. "Never helped a whole lot with spinning," he murmured, carefully uncorking each bottle.

"I said steady hands, not patience."

Emma inched closer, trying to get a good look as the man that she'd loved not much less time than she'd known him carefully tilted the blue liquid into the brown. One drop. Two drops. He paused, glancing over to his father who nodded in return. Three drops. The brown began to recede, giving way to the blue and it was more of a strange, swirling darkness now. The potion moved inside the little vial and Neal looked nervous.

"Keep going," Gold encouraged softly.

Four drops in and there was a tiny little storm brewing inside a vial. It raged against itself, smoke pouring out the top, but with the fifth drop it went quiet once more, simmering down until it settled and eased into a little darker shade than the blue that filled the smaller vial. Neal's eyes flickered up. "Now?"

"Yes," his father answered and Belle reached for it and was told not to leave a single drop. She tilted it back and the liquid moved thick and heavy, causing her to swallow hard.

They waited for a moment as she sat there, until finally she undid the bandages around her hand and stretched it out for careful inspection. Emma found herself inching closer to get a better view and saw that the would was all but healed. No dark veins reached out from it and the poison appeared to be completely gone, unlike when Gold had taken the antidote.

After she was done with her own inspection, she held it out for Gold to take a look. He nodded, his eyelids heavy. "Well done, Bae," he whispered.

Neal eased himself down to the floor next to the couch and Henry made his way over to his birth mother. Emma wrapped an arm around him even as Regina joined. "How's he doing?"

Regina quirked one dark eyebrow. "You can see him as well as I can. Does he _look_ okay to you?"

It had taken a while, but Emma thought she had a decent understanding of Regina's personality. Most of the time, anyway. When she snapped at an innocent question, she was worried. Regina Mills did a lot of worrying, even if she didn't want anyone to know. "I thought maybe since he got hit with magic you might know more," Emma explained and her former enemy's expression eased just a little. It could have been that Henry was looking at her for answers too.

The mayor sighed. "His curse won't let him die from this, but we're in a land that keeps him..." She paused, working through the words. "Sectioned off - maybe? - from some if his power. He can't heal it all at once like he might be able to do back home. He needs _rest_." The last word was very pointedly directed at the injured man lying on the couch.

"Well aware of my limits, dear," Gold murmured from his place.

"Cora can get through here, can't she?" Emma asked. "Is this the safest place?"

"Safest one in Storybrooke," the shopkeeper answered. "I redid my protections. They're fresh and mostly void of blood magic. She can't get in, even if she had any of my blood with her."

"So this _is_ the best place then?"

Gold shot Emma an irritated look. "You'll not be bringing the whole town into my home," he growled out.

"But it might be the safest place to come up with a plan," Neal said quietly. "And if you want to be involved in the planning..."

"Of course I'll be involved. If you think I'm going to..." He stopped, his son's smile making him trail off. It was amazing how well he handled Gold. "Fine. Not the whole town though," he groused.

"'Course not, Pop."

He huffed and settled down into his place on the couch. Belle and Neal exchanged a look before he stood and crossed the room, ruffling Henry's hair. "He's arguing. He'll be fine," he promised and their son grinned. "Why don't you go help Belle with your grandpa? I need to chat with your moms."

Emma watched her son nod slowly, biting back an argument if his own. He was so much like his dad, who was so much like his. It could have been worse, she supposed, and counted her blessings that at least he had left the ability to fly back in Neverland. She hoped so anyway.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I hate to say this (mostly because I poke fun at Robin4 for quoting an estimate of chapters and then changing it as it just keeps growing and growing), but I think this story may wrap up around chapter 40, which will certainly make it my longest story yet. I have to admit, I've been having a lot of fun with this one :)

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Three: Family Ties, in which our heroes find out about the cursed scroll, Henry makes a deal with his grandpa, and Wendy has a heart-to-heart with Baelfire.


	34. Family Ties

**Chapter Thirty-Three: Family Ties**

It didn't take long for Regina to discover that her vault and her office that was connected to it had been commandeered by her mother. She felt violated and betrayed, but not overly surprised. It may have been a personal attack or it may have simply been the easiest for her to take. Rumple had instilled a certain appreciation for blood magic, after all, and it wasn't like those were the only things she'd stolen away. The first thing the Queen of Hearts had done was to take advantage of the fear and chaos to torch the bean fields and gather any remaining beans to herself, leaving the citizens of Storybrooke with no means to escape her wrath. That was certainly enough to make the average citizen cower, Regina knew well, but the the hero types always took a bit more.

None of that really surprised her though. She knew her mother too well. It was Cora's brazen call for the so-called leaders of Storybrooke, as she referred to them, to come to the Town Hall for an explanation of how things might continue forward in something akin to a peaceful setting that set her teeth on edge. Not that Regina believed that for half a moment. Her mother was calling them together to tote her power and to see in Rumple had made it to his feet yet. He hadn't, and they were all well aware that that fact put them at a disadvantage.

They were going, if for nothing else than a plan could not be fully formed until they knew what cards Cora held. The number of magical items that she had at her fingertips in her daughter's vault was nothing to overlook. Regina had been doing a mental inventory since she'd found out she was there, and a few items could do some serious damage.

Snow and Regina were approaching this together with Emma at their side. It had seemed like the best way to show unity between them, no matter how nauseating Regina's step-daughter could be at times when she thought she could talk a situation into being better. Baelfire, Belle, and David were there with them as well, Bae standing in for his father and Regina had to admit that since their trip to Neverland his powers seemed only to have grown. Henry had wanted to come too, of course, but they'd convinced him that someone needed to make sure his grandfather stayed in bed. He and Wendy had been put to that duty, and Rumplestiltskin had begrudgingly admitted that showing up in the state he was in would be both difficult and pointless. If he were steadily on his feet again they could have used it, but two days after Cora had unleashed her attack on him he was still a ways away from standing steadily on his own. His magic was tied up in the healing process and left him sleeping more than it didn't.

"Does anyone else get the feeling we're walking into a trap?" Emma asked as they stopped at the Town Hall entrance. Word had spread quickly that the Queen of Hearts had called a parle, and while the Charmings had asked them to stay away for their own safety there was quite a crowd gathered. Outside, of course. No one dared face her directly. Why would they when their heroes and somewhat reformed villains were foolishly willing to taken that risk for them?

"I thought that was a given," Baelfire said from his place. "Regina, Papa said something about magically binding this meeting?"

"To make sure all parties involved come out alive," Regina agreed. He'd mentioned it to her too before they'd left. While it would keep them from attacking Cora if the opportunity arose, it would also protect them from any traps that had been set for them. She wasn't quite sure how to approach it, though, as they were already entering the building.

"I did wonder what this contract was doing on my desk this morning," her mother's all-too-sweet voice filled the lobby. "I thought it looked like Rumple's work. Shame he couldn't make it."

"It's not your desk," Regina growled automatically, but that only brought a smile to Cora's lips.

"It is now," she answered and the contract appeared in her daughter's hands in a swirl of magic. "We don't have all day dear."

"How do we know it's really from Gold?" David asked from behind, but Regina was already examining the document. It was fairly short and direct to the point. Rumple usually liked to meddle a bit with words when it came to his contracts, but he was wounded and his magic was well tied up in handling that. There was a slight difference in the script of his contracts that were handwritten and those that were simply produced with magic, but this one certainly looked like Rumplestiltskin's magic had taken a quick detour from healing to create this.

Baelfire reached over and snagged it. "It's Papa's," he acknowledged with full confidence.

"I just need one magic-user's signature to bind you all to it," Cora explained.

"Done," Regina said sharply with a flick of her hand and her name was the binding one to the contract. The magic would bounce back on her should anyone break the contract on her end. It was a risk, but one she was willing to take to get this over with.

The contract disappeared and she knew it hadn't been her mother that called it. Rumple liked to keep those carefully tucked away should he ever need them for anything. Not that he would for this. The magical commitment they'd both made would serve to make sure the terms were enforced.

"Come along then," Cora beckoned and led the small group u to Regina's office. The room at been entirely redecorated in red and black and Cora took a seat behind the desk. "How do you like it, dear?"

Regina tilted her head up and glared. "It's tacky."

"Don't be rude, sweetheart. No one likes a sore loser after all. You must take your defeat with grace."

"We haven't lost yet, Mother."

"Yes you have. You just don't know it yet." She smiled at them as smoke appeared suddenly, leaving a box in its wake. Regina felt like someone had landed a blow that drove all the air out of her and her mother's smile broadened.

"What the hell is that supposed to be?" Emma demanded crassly. "A jewelry box?"

"Regina knows, don't you dear? Why don't you tell your friends?"

"Regina?" Snow asked, fear creeping into her voice. "What is it? What's in the box?"

"A scroll," Regina whispered and her mother beamed. "_The_ scroll."

"For what spell?" Belle asked and the Evil Queen swallowed hard.

"For a curse. The Dark Curse. Mother, only I can reverse it..."

"That's not entirely true, is it?"

"Regina?" the savior pressed from behind when the dark haired woman didn't answer right away.

Regina gathered her courage to make sure her voice held. "You'd destroy the town with everyone in it."

"You're getting the picture, darling," the Queen of Hearts answered cheerfully. "And you understand the stakes. Your dear boy, your little allies, _everyone_ will be destroyed if you cross me." Her dark eyes flickered to Snow and Regina felt a very strange need to step between them rising inside of her. "We'll have our little war that I know you're all so eager to get on with, but in _my_ time, not yours. Do I make myself clear?"

Snow - foolish, gullible, naive Snow - stepped forward. "We don't want to go to war with you, Cora. We want-"

"A little liar, just like your mother," Cora snapped, magic whipping around the younger woman. It slammed into her, knocking her back into the wall, but cut off abruptly and Cora winced. The magic had bit back as the contract that she'd signed directed it to. Slowly she straightened again and chuckled darkly. "Well done, Rumple," she murmured and turned her glare to sweep between them all. "His little tricks won't save you though. He's pit himself against me just as surely as you have and I will see the end of you. All of you. Get out."

Regina wanted to argue. She wanted to do more than argue. She wanted to scream and fight back. She didn't want to simply choose to sit back and accept that her mother held them all over the fire with the ability to drop them at her whim. She knew that she should be the only one to reverse the curse - possibly save Rumple, as he'd written it - but her mother could tear it up easily enough. It would be catastrophic and likely would leave no one but her standing in the end. She would do it too, Regina knew she would. If it was destruction or defeat, Cora would choose destruction every time. She revelled in the pain that it brought. Even to her own flesh and blood.

So she turned, her heels tapping against the floors and the others followed slowly and without a word. They knew the stakes as she did and they had to play this carefully or they would lose everything that they had ever loved, just as the curse had intended from the beginning.

* * *

He could hear them just outside the door. They thought they were being quiet, but every creek of the floorboard and every soft word spoken between them startled him awake just as he drifted off again. Rumplestiltskin wasn't complaining, mind you. Each sound that his grandson and displaced friend made meant that they were still there. Cora - or Pan, if he lingered on his dreams at all upon waking - had not swept the boy away. He was safe.

Their voices were muffled by the mostly closed door, but with a little effort - and a small spell that perhaps he shouldn't have strained his magic by using, but did anyway - he could hear them as if they were in the room with him.

"None of this is your fault, Henry," Wendy said, and she sounded as if she might have said it several times before for the tone she used.

"It is. If I'd just remembered them then maybe we could have left earlier and Cora would have been stuck on Neverland, but she followed them and hurt Grandpa Gold."

"That's her doing, not yours. Neverland makes you forget. That's not your fault."

"You didn't forget."

"Pan wouldn't let me. He was using my brothers against me."

Henry huffed a heavy sigh. "We're going to help you find them," he promised.

"I know. Bae said so, so I know we'll find them. First we have to save your family, then we can save mine."

"I don't know how much good I'll be. I tried to be a hero and you see what happened. I thought I was old enough to try, but I guess not."

Wendy giggled and Rumplestiltskin could almost see his grandson's offended expression at it. "You _are_ a hero, Henry. You saved me, didn't you?"

Rumplestiltskin chuckled softly to himself as he settled back against the pillows. He was feeling better, but he had a ways to go before he was whole again. He'd slept more in the last two days than he thought he had in quite a long time. He wanted little more than to get up and move, but even without his usually present guards - Bae and Belle - he would be hard pressed to get more than a couple steps on his own. The spell Cora had used at him had done more than he'd originally thought. While it had caused quite a bit of damage both inside and out, it had also undone the magic he'd worked on his ankle - _that_ had been an unpleasant surprise the first time he'd tried to put any kind of weight on it - as well as undoing his defenses down to their deepest layers. He hadn't needed to rely on those as heavily in the Enchanted Forest, but here a blow dealt to his very human body would take longer to heal. Cora had truly taken him out if the game for a while yet. He'd _told_ them trusting her was a bad idea.

"Grandpa Gold? You awake?"

Rumplestiltskin looked to the door where Henry was peeking in. The boy had been terrified of Mr Gold when he was younger. Curiosity and an occasional need for a gift were the only things that had sent him through the shop door. Now, though, he freely entered his home. They were family, and Rumplestiltskin wouldn't change that for anything. "Hey Henry. Having fun with your friend?"

"I guess," the lad sulked. "Are you feeling better?"

"A bit. Well enough for company."

That seemed to be what he was waiting for. Henry moved over to the bed quickly and piled on. His grandpa tried not to grimace too visibly as he did so. He pushed his curse back, the quiet and dark voice whispering into his mind. _Henry is dangerous. He'll be your death. Crush him. End him. Save yourself. _Rumplestiltskin loosed a long breath out in the form of a sigh and reached a hand up. His grandson took it immediately as he'd seen his own father do many times since he'd come to them. It brought a smile to even the Dark One's lips. "Hey," he whispered, emotion and pain making his voice rough. "This isn't your fault."

"You were listening?"

Rumplestiltskin chuckled. "Maybe a little. That's what you get for talking outside my door."

"Guess so," Henry groused and stretched out on the bed next to him, not willing to let go of his grandfather's hand. "You don't have to lie, you know. I know it's my fault."

"It's hardly your fault that Pan wanted you or that Cora is a vindictive..." He paused, the parent in him reminding him that his grandson was only eleven. "Well, you know what I mean."

That pulled a small laugh from him. "I know, but Pan told me that if I live, then you die, and the shadow told me about the prophecy." He paused and looked up, his young eyes more full of concern than any boy's should be. "I don't want you to die because of me."

"Oh Henry," Rumplestiltskin murmured and he was at a loss. This was when Bae would tell his son he would make sure they were both safe and Belle would tell him to have hope, but he wasn't either of them. He was the Dark One, constantly battling his curse to make the right choice when it came to this boy. He didn't know what to say about it. He didn't want to make promises he couldn't keep.

Henry clung to his grandpa's hand when he didn't say anything and Rumple reached over, wincing as the movement strained the still-healing wounds, and put his hand down against the boy's tousled hair. It used to soothe Bae when he was that age, and it seemed to settle Henry down enough for Rumplestiltskin to gather his courage. "I won't lie to you, Henry. I've been running both to and from that prophecy for a great many years. I'm not... proud over some of the ways I've thought about dealing with it, but know this: whatever happens it's not your fault. Do you hear me?"

"Yeah."

"Funny, I don't believe you," he teased softly and Henry managed something like a real smile.

"I'll make you a deal, grandpa."

"What's that now?" Rumplestiltskin chuckled.

"You do your best to stay alive and I won't blame myself, okay?"

"You have yourself a deal, Henry."

"Great!" he cheered and suddenly the boy had his arms wrapped around him in a tight hug.

Rumplestiltskin felt the world pulse around him as healing bones shifted and wounds threatened to reopen at the pressure. The gasp that escaped him sent his grandson back peddling immediately, an apology on his lips. "S'okay," Rumplestiltskin slurred, his vision still hazy around the edges. "It's okay, Henry."

His grandson crawled back on the bed and retook his hand. "You sure?"

"Of course. I think... I've just about hit my limit for wakefulness though."

"Can I stay? I promise not to hug you again until you're better."

That pulled a soft chuckle from him and he nodded even as he felt his eyes slipping closed and sleep claiming him.

* * *

The idea of Cora having the ability to utterly destroy the little town was unnerving at its very best. Hook had no idea what all would happen should she decide to rip that scroll up, but he wagered that he wouldn't be safe from it. While she held his heart he was nothing better than her slave. He would be unable to defy her, even if it got him killed, and to her, he was utterly replaceable. All she needed to do was pluck a heart from someone else to have another equally loyal slave at her side.

Now, though, he was simply looking for a way to survive the next ten to twenty minutes. He'd never been in Regina's office before, but he'd seen it before Cora had decided to unleash her rather formidable temper against it. Hook wasn't sure what the table, chairs, vases, or very expensive lamp had done to the Queen of Hearts, but she left them in shambles. The curtains burned, the rug was singed and ruined, and even the marble had chunks missing from it. As she raged, he did what he thought he'd never do: he cowered. There was a difference in being a coward and knowing when to take cover for your life, the pirate thought, and he was certain it was the latter. There was no point in having his head taken from his shoulders by a vindictive queen.

He wasn't sure why she felt the room deserved to die a fiery death. She'd known Regina had chosen her side, and by doing so, had pit herself against her mother. This was not news to the queen, only more evidence to the fact that she should have already been aware of.

"_Damn him_," Cora roared and the windows shattered outward, the glass pausing in midair, and then retreating back into its place so no one outside would be any wiser to the temper tantrum being thrown in the mayor's office. Hook didn't count, of course. He was just her tool.

So it wasn't Regina that she was raging against. It was likely Rumplestiltskin. The pirate hadn't been there for the exchange, but he knew enough about what had happened to know that the imp hadn't shown his face - coward - and that he'd sent along some sort of magical document that bound Cora to playing nice.

"He thinks he's being clever," the queen seethed. "Always so clever. We'll see how clever he is when I own him."

"You'd have to have his dagger for that, wouldn't you?" Hook asked. He was still mostly unclear as to what all went into the Dark One dagger. It could kill him - and apparently it transferred power of some kind from what they'd discussed in Neverland - and it could even control him, but to what extent he didn't know. He wondered if Cora was in the telling mood.

"I am well aware what I need to put Rumplestiltskin on his knees, captain," she growled and he felt a shock wave of power slam into him. It knocked him back a couple of steps before he caught himself, wobbling just a bit. "First, though, I have a job for you. You're going to go on a little trip for me."

"I'm not your errand boy," Hook snapped.

"Aren't you? I think it's time that the pirate learned his manners."

Killian didn't like the sound of that. He backed away, his pace ready to quicken even as her command hit him like a bag of rocks. "Stop." The command hit him and he froze, pulling a smile from her. "On your knees, pirate."

He dropped, his knees hitting the floor hard enough to make him wince. She stood over him with a satisfied smirk. "When you address me, from now on, it will be by title. You will bow when you enter, and when you have displeased me you will drop to your knees and beg my mercy and forgiveness." She paused, as if waiting. "Let's hear it."

"I beg your forgiveness and mercy, Your Highness," Hook ground out.

"Well it's a start. I've obviously provided you with far too much freedom. I won't make that mistake again. You will go on this trip and you will not deviate from your course, do you understand? Let nothing get in your way."

His chest tightened where his heart should have been and he nodded.

"Very good."

"And where am I going? My Queen," he added as an afterthought when he felt like his chest might explode from the inside out.

"Oz," she told him simply and handed him two beans. "You're fetching my eldest daughter Zelena. She will stand by my side in Regina's stead."

If Cora thought that some elder daughter was going to turn the tide, she had something else coming. Not that Hook could _say_ that. He had always been a quick learner.

"When you return, I'll have built my army. With them we'll rid ourselves of the vermin in this town."

"And how will you do that, My Queen?"

"The same way I made you so very, very loyal, captain. I'll take their hearts. On your way now."

Her voice sent a shiver down his spine. He wasn't often inclined to throw his chips in with the hero types, but anyone was better than this mad woman that he'd found himself chained to. Maybe he'd find a bit of luck in Oz with her estranged daughter. If nothing else, she couldn't be worse.

* * *

He found Wendy sitting in the room that Belle had turned into her own personal library. She'd always been fond of books and stories of all kind, so it was no surprise to find her there. He'd been so busy since they got back that he'd hardly had time to sit down with the girl that he'd once considered his sister. She was just as he remembered her. Physically anyway. There was something in her eyes that had changed, and he saw the haunting memories of Neverland there when they'd spoken before.

"Pan didn't keep books," Wendy said without looking up. "Your father seems to keep quite a library though."

"My papa and his are very different men."

"I can tell." She finally laid the book down and Bae's dark eyes focused in on a title about the innovation of the twentieth century. Wendy had a lot of catching up to do. He remembered how that felt when he'd first escaped. "How were you both separated? You thought he was dead, but he seems very much alive to me. Does he make near-death experiences a habit?"

Bae chuckled and took a seat in the armchair next to the plush sofa she was curled into. "Well, lately he's made it a habit," he answered. "My father and I... Well we had a rough go of it. He took on a curse to save my life and it changed him. A lot. When we met, he'd let me go and I thought the curse had taken him over and there was nothing left of my papa."

Wendy leaned forward in her seat and Bae had forgotten just how concerned those young eyes could get. "I'm so sorry, Bae," she whispered. "But things are different now, aren't they?"

"Yeah. Really different," Bae said softly. "It's hard to explain why, but he's proven himself again and again since we found each other. I trust him and I know it's _actually_ him, not just a demon wearing his face."

"I'm so happy for you, Bae."

Bae managed an awkward smile and ran a hand through his grey-flecked hair. "Thanks. Listen, Emma's been looking for John and Michael. "

"She hasn't left Storybrooke though," Wendy said, though it sounded more like a question than a statement.

"Yeah. She's really good at finding people. She uses the computer... Henry can show you." Wendy gave a little smile and Bae felt a crooked one of his own tilt his lips without permission. "You guys seem to have hit it off."

"Henry saved me from Pan just like you saved my brothers from him," she said with a blush working it's way faintly to her cheeks. "He's very sweet."

"He's a good kid," Bae agreed. So was she though. As long as Wendy had lived, Bae knew that she was still a child, no matter what she'd experienced. She was a little girl lost in a strange world, and if his son could help her he knew that Henry would. That's just how he was, and Baelfire wouldn't have had him any other way.

"Will I have to leave when Emma finds John and Michael?" Wendy asked hesitantly.

"You don't have to so anything that you don't want to, Wendy, but it's going to be dangerous here. I wouldn't want you to get caught up in it."

"I'm not afraid. I want to help you and your family if I can. May we stay with you and your family?"

"Of course," Bae answered. "You guys welcomed me into yours when I didn't have anyone. I wouldn't turn you out now."

For the first time since he'd known her in London at the turn of the last century, Bae saw Wendy Darling smile openly as she stood and flung her arms around him. He'd spent so long without a family, but now he had them all and he was determined to keep them safe. He'd make sure of it.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Oh my. It's back. Did the scene with Rumple at Bae's grave leave anyone else's heart in pieces on the floor? I know it did mine.

Next time - Chapter Thirty-four: Follow the Yellow Brick Road, in which Hook goes to Oz, word spreads that Cora holds the cursed scroll, and Bae and Emma make plans.


	35. Follow the Yellow Brick Road

**Chapter Thirty-Four: Follow the Yellow Brick Road**

Captain Killian Jones had sailed a great many places, but Oz had not been one of them. He'd heard of it long ago when he'd sailed for the king that had betrayed he and his brother, but nothing had brought them to it. The fact that he was there at another bloodthirsty monarch's request did not get his hopes up.

The _Jolly Roger_ was well equipped for traveling between the realms. She was sturdy and she was fast. He might have been less conspicuous to simply hop through the portal on foot rather than choosing to dock his ship in the port in Oz, but he really didn't care about being inconspicuous. He was still the captain of his ship, and if there was one thing he could cling to in the midst of being utterly owned by that evil witch, it was that.

The market just off the docks seemed normal enough. It reminded him in part of the Enchanted Forest. People filled the streets, bargaining and haggling their lives away, and no one gave the leather-clad pirate a second look as he moved through them.

Cora had told him what his objective was, but nothing more. He had no idea what her estranged daughter would look like, act like, or where she lived. Cora might not have known herself, as it seemed that the first real thought she'd put into the girl was when her _chosen_ daughter had turned her back on her.

No other way to find someone other than asking, he thought as he started for a friendly looking fishmonger. The man was unloading the night's catch into a wheelbarrow, likely to ready for market. It was early morning in this world and he barely noticed the pirate's approach for all his work and he startled at the greeting from behind, looking up and then smiling through surprise. "Hello, friend. New to port?"

"Aye," the pirate answered. "I'm here looking for someone. A lass."

The fishmonger's smile only grew. "Pretty thing?"

"I do hope so."

"What's her name? Perhaps she's someone I know."

"Zelena."

Hook watched the aging man go pale, his sunk-in sort of eyes going wider than they should have been able to go. He stuttered a moment, words not quite strung together right, and finally managed, "The W-wicked W-witch?"

Hook sighed. Just his luck. "Knowing her mother, likely so," he grumbled.

"She doesn't take kindly to uninvited guests."

"Well, I don't have much of a choice. Which way, if you please?"

The old fishmonger pointed a shaky, crooked finger. "On past the docks and follow the road there until you reach the Emerald City."

"Which road?"

"The one paved in yellow bricks."

Hook nodded his thanks and did as told. He found the yellow brick road at the end of the docks and followed its winding path. The city peeked up over the hillside and seemed aptly named. It shined and sparkled green in the morning light, but even it's beauty did nothing to quiet the unease that settled into the pirate captain's mind. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched, but every time he looked up into the trees all he saw were gently swaying branches. He continued on in this way before he'd finally had enough and he pulled his gun from his satchel and took a shot into the trees.

Birds didn't scatter as he thought they might, but something did fly out. Killian's eyes widened as what looked like a flying monkey of some kind came screeching from its hiding place and turned its wrath on the pirate. It cried out angrily as it swooped low, sending Hook diving to the the grass to the side of the road. Clawed feet caught onto his shoulders and even as he struggled the creature picked him up off the ground and carried him into the air. As they flew higher and higher, Hook finally stilled his fighting, lest the beast decide to drop him down into the ravine below and to his most certain death.

The view would have been spectacular, had the pirate cared anything for it at the time. The ravine was littered with trees down below as well as up the side of either hill. The city sat at the top of a hill and glowed brightly. People bustled below, tiny specks from the height that the monkey had climbed to, and Hook tried not to think about how much pain would be cramped into mere seconds after he hit the ground below should the creature decide to loosen its grip. Thankfully it didn't, and the landing was relatively easy as it dropped him on the outer balcony of the tallest building in the city.

Hook rolled as he hit, coming up to his feet fairly quickly and found himself standing on a golden balcony at the end of a hall that stretched on and on. He looked around, waiting for someone to acknowledge that a bloody _monkey_ had dropped him off, but no one seemed to care. If there were any people here at all they didn't bother to show their faces.

His boots echoed softly against the gold marble that looked like it simply continued on from the road that he'd been following. The sides of the hall were the same dark, emerald green that the city was - he assumed - named for and he tried to ignore the fact that the monkey had not left him alone. It flew, sometimes balancing against a pillar near the ceiling and squawking at him if he stopped too long to look around.

"You're a lot of help," he groused at it and it flew ahead towards a door that read OZ in intricately carved letters that overlapped. The doors opened for him without touching and he flew in the rest of the way to land next to a woman who stood as if waiting for him. She was perfectly centered on an elevated dais made of the same gold and green marble that the rest of the building was structured out of. She, like everything else, was green and smiled wickedly at him.

The monkey chirped at her, waddling over with his awkwardly large wings and waited until she reached out to stroke him affectionately. "Don't worry, Beautiful One. Pirates aren't known for their manners, after all."

This seemed to calm to creature and his red eyes flashed, making Hook want to take a step back. He refused to give into it though and straightened his shoulders. "Your pet decided to take me for a flight."

"That sounds like a complaint. He saved you a good two hours of walking." The smile still hadn't faded and her blue eyes peered dangerously at him. They seemed to cut straight through, looking for a weakness to exploit. "What's your name?"

"Hook," the pirate answered. "Captain Hook."

"Fitting. I take it that is your vessel docked down by the bay?"

"It is."

"And you're looking for Zelena?"

"Yes," he answered uncomfortably and she disappeared in a puff of green smoke, reappearing right in front of him, so close that he could feel her breath on his skin.

"You've come a long way for that, Captain Hook. Tell me, what could you possibly want from little old me?"

"You?" he gaped. "You're Zelena?"

"Is it so hard to believe?"

"You're…. green."

"And you're rude," she snapped, the smile instantly fading as she pulled back, offence radiating off of her in waves. "What do you want, pirate, or shall I have my pet here take you for another spin over the city?"

"No need for that," Hook answered hastily. "I'm not here to harm you."

She snorted. "That you think that you could is quaint."

Hook quirked an eyebrow. "You are your mother's daughter then."

That seemed to get her attention. The Wicked Witch didn't bother to teleport this time, but covered the distance she'd put between them as quickly as if she had. There was something desperate in her gaze. "What do you know of my mother?"

"She sent me for you with all of her… affections."

"My mother wants me back?"

"That _is_ why I'm here," the pirate drawled.

"Then we mustn't waste time. We'll leave immediately. Can your ship make it back to the Enchanted Forest? I'd expected I would be returning to the Enchanted Forest shortly, but this is sooner than I expected. I hadn't prepared a portal. Can your ship make it back?"

"Aye, indeed she can, but your mother isn't in the Enchanted Forest any longer."

"Then where is she?"

"A little place called Storybrooke."

Zelena made a face, scrunching her would-be pretty nose up in disgust. "That sounds horrible."

"You have no idea," Hook managed and her smile reminded him of a puppy eager to please. This woman would do anything to gain her mother's affections. Well, so much for her being any help to him. He supposed he should have seen this coming after everything.

* * *

She'd found grandfather and grandson sprawled out on the bed and both sound to sleep when they'd gotten home from their terrible meeting with Cora. Mary Margaret had been visibly upset by the encounter and seemed to think that making her way through Rumple's kitchen and cleaning anything that might have a speck of dust on it would make her feel better. Belle had tried to warn her against it, but warnings of how the shop owner liked everything _just so_ - which really meant his own version of organized chaos - fell on deaf ears as Snow White went at it like her life depended on it.

Thankfully Rumplestiltskin was still in the mostly-sleeping stage of healing from his encounter with Cora upon their arrival from their Neverland adventure, so he wasn't up and pitching a fit about his entirely too-full house just yet. All six of the bedrooms were filled - something that Belle didn't think had ever happened before - and by people that he'd likely prefered never step foot in his home, much less be sleeping under his roof, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Since Cora had taken over the Town Hall and the vault, it was only a matter of time until she moved herself into Regina's home, so the former Evil Queen had gathered what she could from it and had brought her more sacred possessions with her to the three story, pink house. The Charmings - as Rumple and Regina both liked to call them - had come at Emma's request, and Bae certainly hadn't been able to say no to that. Cora had a long standing grudge against Mary Margaret's mother and that hatred seemed to bleed through to Mary Margaret herself as well as Emma, who was also staying in the house. Wendy, having nowhere to go, had been put up in the last remaining.

Henry had claimed the room that might have once been part of the attic. It's two little windows peered out the front of the house and was right next to the only other room on the third level that Belle particularly loved: the one with a balcony to it. Mary Margaret and David had moved into that one, though if Emma hadn't discreetly moved her things into Bae's room, Belle thought she might have made claims on it. In the end, keeping some of the more volatile frenemies - that's what Henry had laughingly called them - further apart. The boy hadn't seemed to want to nap in his own room, though, as he had taken over Belle's side of the bed.

He and Rumple were both sound asleep when Belle eased her way into the room that she had finally given up not sleeping in. Being close to Rumple had become a necessity for her after Cora had nearly killed him. In the two nights that had passed she'd woken several times and simply needed to see the rise and fall of his chest before she could ever hope to fall asleep again. Perhaps Henry felt the same way. The boy had certainly been through a lot.

"Hey."

Belle startled out of her thoughts, finding a pair of dark brown eyes fixed on her. She found herself smiling as he reached a free hand out to her, looking much more alert than he had that morning when they'd left out. "How did it go?" he whispered, not risking the words any louder in case they might wake his grandson.

"Terribly," Belle answered with a strained smile and he frowned in return. "Your deal held, though."

"No doubt in that. Why is it all so terrible?"

"She attacked Mary Margaret."

"And the deal held."

"It did, but that's not the problem."

"Then what is?"

Henry stirred next to him, the voices finally making their way past a layer of sleep and Belle lowered her voice just a little more. "She has a scroll. I didn't see what was written on it, but Regina said it was the scroll that the Dark Curse is written on."

Rumplestiltskin went a little pale at that. "If Regina said so, then it is. She'd know it as well as I would."

"Regina seemed to think that it could cause a lot of trouble."

"It can."

A soft knock at the door pushed it open and the woman in question peered in. She hesitated at the opening awkwardly, not quite sure if she'd interrupted a moment or not. "Did you tell him?" she asked and Belle nodded.

Rumple motioned for his former student to enter and she did, smiling briefly at her still-sleeping son. "I'd have thought you would have protected it better than that," he groused and Regina frowned.

"Better than my vault? Excuse me for thinking that that was the safest place in the town."

"She could kill us all with that."

"I'm aware."

"Are you? The curse was designed to be broken, but to leave us here. You would have to rip it up to end Storybrooke's existence."

"What if Cora did it?" Belle asked.

"We'd die. We'd all die," her love answered tightly. "A few might get out. Emma, perhaps, as she's the savior. Henry, but those of us born in the Enchanted Forest… We'd have no hope of surviving it."

"Why the hell would you design it that way?" Regina demanded.

"It's not my design. It was part of the price. Something of that magnitude has many, many small and large prices alike worked into the fabric of the spell. They all have to be met just so lest the whole thing unravel. Hence the particular ingredient that you had to use to cast it."

Belle wasn't sure exactly what Rumple meant by that, but from the look that Regina wore it hadn't been pleasant. She nodded. "Fine, can you get it back?"

"Perhaps, but not any time soon." He paused, and Belle saw his expression shift as he tried to decide how much he trusted Regina with. Finally he sighed, looking her straight in the eye. "If I were to waltz in there as is, I'd never get close."

"You wouldn't make it out of the house, grandpa," Henry said sleepily from his side and Belle stifled a laugh.

"Oh, you think so?" Rumplestiltskin groused and ruffled the boy's hair.

"Mm. And you promised."

"That I did."

"What did you promise?" Regina demanded and her son looked up at her, finally blinking away the last bit of sleep.

"Grandpa Gold and I made a deal. Don't worry. It's all okay."

"The boy was worried, is all," Rumple explained. "I promised to do my best to stay alive if he'd stop his endless worrying."

"Couldn't imagine what side of the family he got _that_ from," Belle mused softly and received a glare for her efforts.

Regina snorted. "If anyone is going to kill your grandfather, it's me, Henry. You don't need to worry about him."

The jest eased the tension in the room a little and Henry grinned, scooting out of the bed with a care that said he likely hadn't hopped onto it with quite as much. "I know you guys are going to win. Heroes always do."

Belle choked on her laugh at the faces that the two sorcerers made. "Henry, we're-" Regina started, cut off by her former teacher.

"- not heroes."

"Well you're not villains either," Henry said emphatically. "Not anymore."

The arguments nearly began to roll off their tongues again when Belle stopped them. "Thank you is a response that goes well here."

"Excuse me?"

"No, _thank you_," Belle answered with a smile and Henry dissolved into a fit of giggles. She earned a double glare on that one, but she was sure it was put on, if for nothing else than the soft chuckle that finally escaped Rumple. There were moments - few that they might be in these days - where they found peace amongst the chaos. It was amazing enough that this ragtag little family could find peace at all, so she would take it where she could find it.

* * *

Word spread quickly that Cora had the scroll. Not everyone knew exactly what that meant, but the general consensus was that it was a terrible thing. That had been Leroy's explanation, at least, when he brought the news into Granny's that evening. He didn't explain exactly why, but it was certainly lobbed into the _terrible news_ category.

"What do you think it means?" Ruby asked and he looked up at her.

"What makes you think I know?"

"You're a writer. Don't you have some sort of idea where this craziness is going?"

August choked out a laugh, the beer he'd been sipping on nearly covering the table. "Well," he said and saw Ruby's eyes light up, "it could mean that she has the ability to control us all."

"Like some sort of puppets?"

He winced. "Sure, I guess."

"Sorry," she managed, looking a little sheepish. "That wasn't… I didn't mean."

"It's okay. No harm no foul, right?"

"I certainly hope so."

He'd just been getting to know Ruby when the curse broke and the memories flooded back in. She was cute and much smarter than she let on. When she received Red's memories, she'd proven to be very clever indeed. He liked her spark, and in the weeks that followed the utter plane crash that had been his attempts to woo Emma, she'd made him feel a little less like an ass. She'd told him she could only help a little because most of it was warranted and he couldn't disagree. They were friends, and a friend was exactly what he needed right now. He had his papa and now he could start building an actual life. Maybe something would come of his time with Ruby, maybe it wouldn't, but he had someone that he could talk to and offer an ear if she needed it. He could do a hell of a lot worse in a small town that looked up to Emma as… well, as the savior. Thankfully the rumours hadn't spread too quickly.

"You off work anytime soon?"

"It's starting to die down, but if Leroy keeps yelling that the Queen of Hearts is going to kill us all, everyone will flock here. Forget the Town Hall, Granny's is apparently the meeting grounds for Storybrooke."

August chuckled. "Well, I promised Papa that I'd come by and help him with a tricky clock tonight. I don't think he actually needs help…."

"He just wants to spend time with his son," Ruby said with a smile.

"Hey, I'm not complaining. There's no way to make up for nearly thirty years in a few month's time, you know?"

"I couldn't imagine if I was separated from Granny for that long. I mean, the curse had us at odds, but no more really than we ever were. We always love each other, no matter how much we fight."

"Have a drink with me?"

"August, I can't…."

"Hey, not like that. I'm not…" He sighed. _This_ was not the reputation he needed, even if he might have deserved outside of the town as well. "Just friends."

"Yeah?" she teased a little, though he could see the hesitation there.

"Yeah."

"Okay," she said after a moment and he found himself grinning.

Ruby had just eased down into the booth when the front door of the diner flew open. Magic pushed it forward, the winds washing through the whole opening and sending menus flying in all directions. Patrons stood and fear was almost tangible as the Queen of Hearts strode in. She looked quite the spectacle in her red and black dress with her head held high and her hand outstretched as she commanded her magic to do as she willed.

Granny bristled from behind the counter. "You're not welcome here," she groused and the witch turned to look at her.

"Aren't I? That's no way to speak to your queen."

"You're not my queen."

Rage shone in the Queen of Heart's eyes and Cora lifted her hand in the air just as Ruby spoke, standing from her seat. "I don't think you heard the owner of this diner. You're _not_ welcome here. We're not afraid of you."

Cora's painted lips stretched into a rather nasty smile. "That's where you've gone wrong," she said and she flicked her fingers, sending a burst of magic at Ruby.

August saw it coming and his eyes widened. He was on his feet before he'd given himself permission to and he felt the power hit, sending him skidding instead of her. His back slammed into a table, sending it rocking and one chair toppling over and pain spread across the back of his head and along his shoulders from where he'd collided with it. His chest was tight where the magic had hit him and when the ringing in his ears finally stopped he heard Cora laughing at him.

"You foolish boy. Did you want to save her?"

The writer pulled himself painfully to his feet, fixing his best glare. "I won't let you hurt her."

"So brave. So pointless." She teleported in a puff of red smoke so that she was standing right in front of him. She moved, her hand reaching out and August didn't have time to flinch more than an inch away from her as she shoved her hand straight into his chest.

"August!" Ruby called, but bright blue eyes were fixated on the Queen of Hearts, certain that he was about to pull in his last breath.

She tore his heart out, whole and gripped between her gloved fingers. He hadn't been able to breathe before, but now the air rushed back in and he choked on it, fear creeping up. He'd heard about this.

Cora was still smiling. "See what being a hero gets you?" she asked, waving his heart around to the crowd. "Any other volunteers?"

The crowd stepped back and gave way to her, not that August blamed him. "Come along," she said. It felt like his old strings were attached again and he moved not of his own will. He tried to pull against them, but his legs moved, following her out of the diner. He looked back desperately and Ruby started forward.

"Don't," he managed and Cora put up her hand, stopping him.

"I'd listen to him, dear."

Ruby stood at the door, angry and brave. "I'm not afraid of you," she growled and lunged forward at the queen, but they were gone in a swirl of magic. August was pulled with her, the first of her little toy soldiers after Hook.

* * *

The very name sounded dull, like a quaint little village in which nothing happened. Zelena had grown up in a village like that. Her mother - the woman that had adopted her - had been one of the kindest souls ever born. She'd also been one of the most oblivious ones as well. Her husband had been a brute and a drunkard, and often clever enough to wait his foul words until his wife's back was turned and her attentions elsewhere. It hadn't taken long after she died for the truth to come out and Zelena to set out on her new course in life. She had just never thought that it would take her here. She'd hoped, certainly, but rarely did she receive what she hoped for.

As the ship popped up and out of the whirlpool that the magic bean created Zelena looked down at her hands. She'd been clutching the side rail with all her might, but as they appeared on the top of the waters her skin began to change. The green faded, retreating back and leaving pale, natural looking skin in its place. She marveled at it. Perhaps this would not be such a dull place afterall.

"There we go. Now you look a bit more like her," the pirate said as he made his way down to the lower deck. "Regina certainly got most of Cora's looks though."

Zelena scowled at him. "Will my wretched sister be there as well?"

"No love there, hmm? No, she deserted Cora. I'd wager that's why she sent me after you."

The witch tilted her nose up in the air. "Mother will see where true loyalties lie."

Hook didn't say anything in return as they made their way closer to the docks. a bumbling townsperson helped with the ramp down and he muttered something about Cora expecting them. "She's already got this town wrapped around her finger," the pirate grumbled. "Maybe she killed Rumplestiltskin after all. That'd frighten them all into submission quick enough."

"Rumplestiltskin? He's here too?"

"Aye, and your mother did a number on him."

He didn't sound like he minded that too much, but Zelena didn't pry. She was too fixated on the little town just beyond the docks. No one seemed to be out and about other than the few people that instantly parted ways for them, and for the first time in her life Zelena felt like she might belong somewhere. Her mother was welcoming her back with open arms. She deserved this. She'd made her own way without Cora and without Rumplestiltskin, and she'd proved her worth to her mother. Certainly over that gaping child that was her younger sister. Regina never really belonged in the place that life had set her down. Now Zelena would take everything that she had been handed so easily.

Hook didn't speak as he led her through the streets and toward a large, white house at the top of a hill. It stood above the rest in beauty and the front door opened for her before she could touch her knuckles to it to knock. She glanced back at the pirate for half a moment, wondering exactly what she should do, but then deciding that he certainly wouldn't know. She was a princess now, and she wouldn't bother herself with lowly pirates such as he.

"Zelena. You came."

Zelena froze at the bottom of the steps that led up to the foyer of the house. The woman that stood before her was one she had only seen in swirls of magic that acted as a looking glass to the other side. She was dressed strangely, but there was no doubt that the clothes were expensive, and she smiled at her eldest daughter, reaching a hand out and beckoning her closer.

"Of course, Mother," Zelena found herself saying. "You called."

Cora's smile only widened. "What an obedient child. Can you ever forgive a mother that chose so poorly so long ago?"

The words were ones that had battered around in her mind only in her sleep. Zelena never thought that her mother would actually say them to her, but there she was, welcoming her into her home and choosing _her_. "The past is the past," she wanted to say nonchalantly, but the words never came. Instead she found herself grasping her mother's hand and embracing her, those arms around her neck that had last set the little basket down to leave her to what Cora surely had hoped would be a better life. "You were just trying to give me my best chance, I know," Zelena whispered in her mother's arms. "How could I ever hold that against you?"

"My dear, dear girl," Cora said as she pulled back, the smile still plastered on her face. "What a woman you've become. I am so very proud."

Zelena beamed. This was all she had ever hoped for.

* * *

August was the first to be taken by the Queen of Hearts once she'd taken over Storybrooke, but he was hardly the last. As the days ticked on she became bolder and bolder. People all over town began disappearing. No one was safe from her hand, and if anyone tried to rescue them they were either taken or killed. In the very best of circumstances, they were left as a message. Leroy had been one such message after the pretty nun-fairy that he'd apparently fallen in love with in the Enchanted Forest was taken by Cora. He'd tried - no one rushed into a situation quite like Leroy did - only to be picked up by magic and thrown halfway down the main street. He slammed into a car so hard that he hadn't even stirred once he landed face first on the pavement. Cora had killed three onlookers and taken another dwarf as her prize that late afternoon. Leroy was left alive, though how long that would last none of them knew. Whale had no good news for them as they huddled in the emergency waiting room.

Emma was at the end of her patience. She'd come to this place nearly two years ago to return a boy that had run away. She'd stayed to make sure that he was okay, and somehow it had turned into her home. Now these people were her friends and her family and Cora was going to pay dearly for what she'd done. She was through with sitting around and distracting herself. If they'd hoped to distract her with the task of finding Wendy's brothers it had only last for a week. They'd been found, but now it was time to deal with the problem at hand. Her parents might not be big on revenge, but they hadn't raised her. She'd always learned to punch back when someone took a swing.

"They're going to talk this until Leroy slips away," she growled, plopping down in the stiff-backed chair next to Neal. "Your dad still out of it?"

"Yeah. He's doing better, but he can't face her right now."

"It's been a week. I thought he was supposed to have some crazy healing skills or something."

Neal shrugged, though she knew better than to let the casual expression fool her. He was as angry about all this as she was. Perhaps more, as her first blow had been dealt towards his father. "His magic does a lot for that, but apparently that dark fairy dust really packs a punch. He's been so bored that he tried to make it downstairs this morning. Did you hear all that?"

"Is that when you got up?"

"Yeah."

Emma grimaced. She'd expected him back after going and checking on whatever had woken him, but he'd never come. She had assumed he had been distracted by breakfast or something like that, but if it was his dad… "Did he make it?"

"Hmm?"

"Downstairs?"

"Oh yeah. Barely, but he made it. Belle was about ready to take his head off for the stunt though. That woman has more patience than anyone I've ever met, but he somehow manages to push it over the edge."

"Somehow? This is your dad we're talking about. I think he lives to push people over the edge."

Neal snorted and a crooked smirk tilted his lips. "Sometimes I wonder." He glanced over at where Emma's parents were discussing the situation with some of the others. Ruby was still determined to go in after August - and the savior wondered when _that_ had happened - and the other dwarves were livid. One of their own was unconscious in the hospital while another had been taken by the Queen of Hearts. "So what do you want to do about it?"

"Say what?"

"You said they'd discuss it until the end of time, right?"

"Are you implying we should do something about it? Just us?" Emma asked and Neal shot her that innocent face that somehow people actually believed. She rolled her eyes and punched him. "Just say it."

"Yeah, that's what I'm implying," he fessed up. "This lady is going to go after everyone we love until someone stops her. She'll see a whole crowd coming, but if we can break in and steal that scroll it'll tip the scales our way."

"Can you still pick a lock?" she asked with a smirk of her own.

Neal grinned. "Seriously?" he asked, standing and offering her a hand up. "It's all about the tumblers, right?"

"I don't think there will be any tumblers on the other side of this door, Neal."

"No, there's a chance to beat her. I don't know about you, but that seems like a better idea than any carnival ride."

She took his hand, allowing her to pull him up. Somehow that grin had always instilled confidence in her, no matter the situation. They'd gotten themselves into some real trouble before, but it always seemed to get them out of it. "Let's do it. For our families."

"For our family," he corrected. "It's crazy, but it's ours."

Emma nodded. "Yeah. Guess we found Tallahassee."

"Guess we did. Now let's go protect it."

* * *

TBC

Notes: Thank you everyone for helping me reach over 300 reviews (and to Sudoku who was my 300th reviewer!). I always love to hear from you and, while life gets crazy, I try to respond back as often as I can. Oh... and yes, Robin4 was right: this will be longer than 40 chapters! That's what I get for making predictions :P

Next Time - Chapter Thirty-Five: A Deal With the Devil, in which Bae and Emma play hero, August is forced to deliver a most unpleasant message, and Rumplestiltskin finds himself face-to-face with Cora.


	36. A Deal with the Devil

**Chapter Thirty-Five: A Deal with the Devil**

Bae liked to think that he made pretty solid choices these days. When he was younger it had been about survival and, he had to admit, a little bit of the adrenaline rush. Neverland had certainly left that with him, but after nearly three centuries of running for his life that probably wasn't the worst thing he could have brought with him. He could have turned out a lot worse, and now that he knew that it had been his own grandfather chasing him down all those years, he thought it might have been just shy of a miracle that he hadn't come out of it all entirely screwed up.

Neverland was now in the past - for good, he hoped - and he had a son to think about. Henry had changed a lot - everything - in his world and he was willing to do what needed to be done to make sure he was safe. They couldn't wait until his papa could handle Cora, no matter how tempting it was. Rumplestiltskin might try to downplay the damage done - and now that he wasn't sleeping quite as much he was certainly trying to repair what he thought would be viewed as weakness - but his son knew better. The others seemed to think that he had bottomless reserves and he did nothing to correct that notion. Baelfire knew better. At least in this world, he had limits.

Emma knew the best way to enter the building and Bae found that all if his work dismantling spells was finally paying off. He managed to open a small hole for them to enter through and Cora didn't bother with locked doors past that. Of course she didn't think anyone would break through her wards.

They made their way through familiar hallways, the darkness that Cora brought with her thick in the air. Bae thought it was different than his papa's was, but Rumplestiltskin had reasons to at least try to be better. The Queen of Hearts didn't bother with that.

Senses flared and he reached out, pulling Emma with him until they were both flat against the wall. August crossed by, never seeming to notice them. His eyes were dull and lifeless, as if someone had pulled his very soul from him. They waited until he'd trudged by before risking a move.

"Going somewhere, dears?"

They froze, and Bae knew that voice, but as he spun to face her a very different set of features met his eye. Far less green. "Zelena?"

The woman in question tilted her head to the side. "And who might you be, love?"

Emma had her gun out then. "Don't move."

"Oh? Aren't you a precious little thing? Do you think that frightens me?"

"I don't really care if it frightens you."

The shot went off and as it did Bae knew it was a bad idea. He didn't know how it would be, just that Zelena didn't strike him as the type to worry too much over a flying bullet.

She didn't have to. One wave of her hand sent the bullet off its original path. He let out a startled cry as it skimmed directly past him, burying itself in the wall behind him. The bullet had flown close enough that he could feel the heat off of it. Zelena grinned, confident in her powers, and she caught Emma as she rushed forward, dangling her in the air. Emma struggled, kicking and threatening, but nothing she did could free her from the invisible hand that held her. Bae jolted forward, pulling power to himself, but Zelena saw it coming. A wall of magic slammed into him and he was thrown back, head colliding with the wall the bullet had hit and his world went immediately black.

* * *

Hook hadn't liked being her little puppet when he was the only one, but as Cora gathered more and more people to her, he found himself liking it even less. There was the dwarf, that irritating puppet, the knight that had apparently married Midas' daughter, a fairy or two, and a collection of people that she simply referred to as peasants. He was quite sure she wasn't done with her collection, but for now they were roaming the town hall and had been disbursed out into the population. There were times when Cora would take someone and no one would be the wiser. They made perfect little snitches for her as long as she held their hearts. They did her bidding without question and fell straight in line. While they helped to distract her full attentions from the pirate captain, they also highlighted just how much he fought even when she tried to pin him in with commands. They made him look expendable, and that was never a good place to be with a mad woman in charge.

August Booth - the man that had once been a puppet - was the only one that seemed to be giving her quite as much trouble. She'd lost her temper several times on him in the few days since he'd come and had nearly crushed his heart into dust more than once. She had him secured fairly well into place now with her commands, though he did wander the halls as if she'd killed him and merely forgotten to tell him so.

It wasn't August that caught his attention, though, but Cora. He'd done well to steer clear of her in the past few days since delivering her daughter to her. If he'd thought that Cora alone was bad, Cora with Zelena falling over herself to help her mother was terrible. The two had a new toy, he thought as he risked a look into what had once been the town's holding room/ sheriff's office, and found something interesting indeed.

They had not one, but two new toys, in the form of Storybrooke's very own savior and Rumplestiltskin's son. It was in that moment that Hook kicked himself for foolish curiosity. If he'd never known, he could have convinced himself that there was nothing to be done, but Milah's boy stood bravely against Cora, dark eyes fixed in a glare. Emma was fighting against the bars of her cage, but Bae stood facing off with the Queen of Hearts herself. She looked about at her wit's end with him after something that was said and the pirate watched with growing dread as she reached forward, her hand going straight into his chest and plucking his heart from it. Baelfire managed to stay mostly quiet as he struggled to breathe through the pain, but staggered back as she applied pressure.

"You're truly your father's boy," Cora said with a triumphant smirk. "So much potential for power, yet you squander it on petty affections. Did you think you could save your family, Baelfire? I'm looking forward to seeing your father's face when he realizes that he's lost you forever."

"Stop!"

Cora spun and Zelena snarled in frustration. Hook stood completely still, almost as if he didn't realize that it had been his own voice calling out to her. The magical commands given by the woman who held his heart kicked in and he gave a little bow. "My Queen," he addressed her. He was clever, but so was she. He had to think fast or it would be both Milah's boy and his own life that would end that day. "Don't you think you're being a bit hasty?"

"Hardly," the Queen of Hearts answered. "I will see Rumplestiltskin on his knees, and what better way to put him there than to hand him back the lifeless body of his son that tried so very hard to be a hero today?"

Bae was still glaring. "All you're doing is sealing your own fate a little tighter, Cora."

"There are other ways," Hook said quickly. If he wasn't careful, Bae would talk himself and the pretty blonde that he cared so bloody much for into an early grave. Then the thought struck him. "And what better way than to have the Dark One himself doing your bidding?"

Cora was a clever lass, and it was that that Hook was betting on. He saw the thought click behind those calculating eyes and her fingers eased up just a little on the heart in her hand. "There's very little Rumple would trade his dagger for, but for his son he just might."

"I don't think he will," Bae countered, and Hook hoped that the look he shot him was enough to plead with him to shut his trap. The lad really was about to get himself killed.

"Either way, he's worth more to you alive than dead."

The Queen of Hearts thought on that a moment before that terrible smile of hers returned. "I do believe you may be right, captain." Without warning she shoved Baelfire's heart back in his chest and leaned directly into his face. "I'll send a message to your papa, and he'll come. If he wants to live - and he does want you to live - he'll give up the dagger to me."

"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you. He's not a fool."

"That's what I'm counting on, dear."

"And Emma?"

"If your father behaves, you might just both go free. We're about to see how much your father really loves you." She turned back to Hook. "Be a good dear and lock him up with his little love. Don't let them out, do you hear?"

"Of course, My Queen," the pirate ground out.

"That's a good pet."

Zelena tilted her nose up in the air as she strode past him at her mother's heels and Hook sighed, looking towards Bae. "I'm sorry," he answered the look of utter betrayal that he wore. "She'd have killed you."

"And now she'll kill us all and use my father to do it."

"As much as I hate to admit it, your father is a clever man. He'll find a way around handing over his dagger to save you."

"Since when have you had any faith in him?"

"I've been trying to kill him for nearly three centuries now. It doesn't take having any sort of faith in someone to acknowledge a fact that they're a wiley sort."

Baelfire tried for a smile. "Papa is clever."

"I just hope that after this is all said and done you'll remember I saved your life here. I wouldn't mind my heart back in the end."

"Imagine that. He wants something," Emma grumbled from the cell.

"Everyone wants something, love. You just have to be good at what you do to get it."

* * *

The fact that Emma and Baelfire had slipped out without a word was brought to her attention by the son that they shared. Henry was not happy with the idea that his other parents hadn't bothered to alert him to the fact that they were going somewhere, especially with Cora lurking about and stealing hearts. "What if she's got them?"

"I'm sure that they're just at the hospital with the others," Regina said sensibly. She'd taken to Belle's small library and was currently reading through one of Rumple's old books on magic. The bookworm always seemed to find just what they needed as soon as she opened one of the old tomes, so she thought she'd give it a shot. It was better than listening to Wendy's questions or dealing with the owner of the house himself who was not happy that everyone insisted that he remain in bed.

"They're not answering their phones," Henry argued. "Either one."

"Have you called David or Mary Margaret?"

"Yeah, and they said they're not there. They're on their way back now. Grandma Snow sounded worried."

Grandma Snow. Regina tried not to laugh. Henry had always had such a way with names, but he had taken his time deciding exactly what he wanted to call each grandparent with the exception of David who had immediately become _Gramps_. She still had trouble swallowing the _Grandpa Gold_ that Rumple had become, and found it even more strange that he didn't seem to mind it.

With a sigh the Evil Queen closed the book and set it down on the coffee table. "Have you told your grandfather yet?"

"I don't want to worry him. Belle said he was asleep."

"Let's keep it that way, shall we?"

"Regina!" Snow's voice sounded loudly enough from the front door that there was really no hope of Rumplestiltskin remaining asleep upstairs. "Regina, come quick!"

"Stay here," the boy's adopted mother demanded and she didn't even have time to argue with him when she heard him racing up the stairs. Let him tell Gold. They might need him if he was ready or not.

Snow was on the doorstep looking frazzled. Down the steps stood her husband, the wolf girl, and Granny. With them, though, was the cause for all the concern. There was no question that August Booth's heart had been ripped from his chest and that he was under Cora's control, and he stood like the puppet he'd once been, though without the visible wood or strings. He was lifeless, controlled, and had every mark on him of a man that had done his best to resist the Queen of Hearts at all costs. It had done him little good in the end.

"Let me guess," Regina said as she took the stairs with all the grace of the queen she was, "my mother sends a message."

Dulled blue eyes flickered over to her. "She does, but only for Rumplestiltskin. She demands that I give the message directly to him."

"Well it's a good thing you've come to my home then, isn't it?" a surprisingly strong voice asked from the top of the stairs.

Regina looked back to the front door and the Dark One himself stood on the deck just outside of it. He had his old cane clutched in his hand, leaning heavily on it, but though Belle lingered just to his side it didn't look like she was going to need to catch him just yet. Henry hesitated on the other side of the doorframe and looked like a boy that had been told not to cross it for anything. Rumple wasn't stupid and he did seem overly fond of the boy since learning of his family ties with him.

August looked absolutely miserable as he took a step forward. "She has Neal and Emma."

Rumplestiltskin gave no outward reaction, though there was a dangerous glint to his eyes as he steadied himself a little more. "And what does your mistress want from me in return?"

"She wishes to speak with you in person. She says…." He paused, grimacing as if he were trying to fight it, but found that he could not. The words were not his own and they were repeated with no small amount of disgust in his voice. "She says that you've been hiding too long and that it's beneath you."

"So says the woman that must flaunt everything she has to make her power known," Rumplestiltskin answered tightly. He turned, his movements easy and aloof, but Regina knew better. His schooled expression only went so far when it was his son's life that was in danger.

"You're not going alone," David vowed. "If Emma's there-"

"Cora demands only Rumplestiltskin's presence," August cut in dully, his face twisted up in a grimace. "She says that if anyone else comes that they'll both die."

"Understood," Rumple answered from his doorstep. "Anything else the _queen_ would like you to relay?"

"I'm sorry," he whispered, and for a moment he looked like he might have found a way to break free, but as quickly as he managed that, she had him in her grasp and his gaze swept over them. "Queen Cora says that no one will escape her. Any of those that try to resist will find themsleves joining me."

"She'll take their hearts?" Snow asked, her voice pained as only she could manage it.

"In death," August managed, and he must have known it was coming. It would be like Cora to tell him that it was useless. Nothing he did - either to side with her or to try to fight against her - would matter. She owned him and she could shatter him. If he knew, though, Regina had to give him credit that he met his fate with a fair amount of courage.

"August!" Ruby cried as his eyes rolled and his knees gave out. He was dead before he hit the ground and there was nothing any of them could have done to stop it. Behind her shields, behind her wards and all of her protections, Cora had crushed his heart to dust to make her point. No one was safe, and those that tried to help others would eventually meet their end by her hand.

Comfort had never been the dark haired queens forte, at least not in a great many years, so she turned her attentions to what she could do and took the steps two at a time after her former mentor. He was moving slowly, his right leg giving him trouble again by the way he barely left any weight to it, and he looked exhausted just with the exertion of coming to meet the unwilling herald from Cora.

"I knew it was something bad when they didn't answer their phones," Henry said, but Regina couldn't have him underfoot right now. Right now she needed to have a very adult conversation with Rumplestiltskin that her son would never know the details of.

"Henry, why don't you go help Belle."

"Help her with what?"

"We have to find a way to defeat Cora once and for all," Belle said, picking up on the not-so-subtle hint. "I know how much you love books. Will you help me? Even I can't get through them all."

Regina had to give it to the bookworm, she was clever. That caught her son's attention enough that he only shot them a wearying glance. "Tell me when you figure something out?"

"As soon as we know something," Rumplestiltskin promised, and apparently that was enough. The boy was gone with Belle and Rumple turned towards Regina. "Make it quick."

"She wants your dagger."

"You think I don't know that?"

"She'll threaten Bae's life until you give it up."

She saw in his eyes that he knew it was true. "And what are you proposing? That I let my son die for-"

"If you give it to her, she'll have you kill him yourself just to see the look on your face. You know I'm right."

And he did. She knew he did. His shoulders slumped and he leaned heavier on his cane than before. For the first time in all the many, many years that Regina had known him, Rumplestiltskin looked old. It was almost like the three centuries that he'd been bouncing about from deal to deal and working his plan into play had finally caught up with him and now it pushed down against him, threatening to break his thin frame under its weight. She didn't envy him his position. If it had been Henry, if she had been in Rumple's place, she couldn't do what she was asking him to do.

"He'll die," he said again, his voice strained.

"Maybe not." She watched him perk for the briefest of moments before the weight settled again. She hurried to explain. "Leave the dagger with me-"

"With _you_?" he scoffed and she held up her hand so that he'd let her finish.

"Leave the dagger with me. Anyone else and they'll hand it over, you know they will. They don't understand what it can make you do. They'll think you can fight it."

"But you know better."

"Of course I do. Leave it with me, Rumple, and she'll know she has no chance of winning. She won't risk you killing her then and there. She'll ask for something else."

"That's a very big risk."

"So is handing it to her. The question becomes: who do you trust more? My mother or me?"

She saw him turn the question over in his mind and he sighed. "You're asking a lot of me."

"I'm asking you to trust me."

"With my soul."

"To save your son. To save _my_ son's father and his other mother. You know I'd do anything for Henry's happiness."

"I do know that," he confessed softly. Magic swirled and the dagger appeared in his hand. "The things we do for our children."

"I'll give it back when it's done, Rumple. You have my word."

"Better make good on it," he growled, though she knew was mostly show. He'd always been fond of her, if he admitted it or not. As he placed the dagger in her waiting hand she knew just how far they'd come. Before the Curse to End all Curses had been cast they'd been at constant odds. After it had brought them here - even as Gold that remembered nothing of Rumplestiltskin - he had been manipulating her and using her. If the chance had come up, she might have killed him once or twice in there. But that time had passed. Now they were a part of a strange, dysfunctional little family held together by one little boy with a heart of gold.

"I will," she promised softly and watched him go.

"He'll be back, won't he?" Henry asked, suddenly at her side.

"Of course he will, sweetie," Regina answered and pulled him into a side hug with her free arm. She clutched the dagger until her knuckles turned white, hoping against everything that she wasn't lying to her son. Rumplestiltskin was a stubborn, stubborn man, and it was in that that she'd place her hope. He didn't like to lose and she hadn't seen him lose yet.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin was angry. That wasn't the only emotion mixed into the bundled mess that had his chest so tight that he thought it might explode, but it certainly was one of the dominant ones. Anger and fear. They vied for the top position in it all even as his magic put him down just outside of Cora's wards at the Town Hall. He gripped his cane tightly, steadying himself against a brief battle with gravity trying to take him all the way to the ground. After a moment the dizziness wore off and he used that anger to focus. Anger could be strength and right now he needed all the strength he had.

He was angry at Cora, it was true, but he couldn't say he was surprised. The woman had no issue with taking a swing at him in any way possible, and using his son against him was most certainly not below her. What surprised him was the stirring anger that was directed at Baelfire. He'd have thought after everything that Bae would have a free pass to almost anything, make any mistake, but apparently this was his father's limit. He didn't know how he knew it, but Rumplestiltskin _knew_ that Bae and Emma had been playing at being heroes. While he was prouder than he could ever express in the goodness that Bae had somehow held onto in all the darkness of his life, this was too much. He would not lose his boy to a foolish notion that could never truly be reached.

The wards opened up and Rumplestiltskin stepped through without a problem. He held his head high even as he limped along to the center of the building. Moving any further forward would put him into the meeting chambers, to the left was the sheriff's office, and to the right the mayor's. He didn't have the patience for a hide and seek game with Cora. "Come on out, dearie. You wanted to talk. Let's have that chat."

Her laugh filled the open space around him before she materialized in front from him. "Oh Rumple. If I'd known all I needed to do was ask." She reached forward, her fingers touching his face and he jerked back as if he'd been burned.

"I'm not here to play your games," he growled dangerously. "Where is my son?"

"Not too worried about the savior, I see."

"I'll be taking both back with me."

"Will you? And how is that?"

"You wouldn't have asked me here had you not wanted something from me. What's your price?"

"So very to the point today. Aren't you feeling well, Rumple?" She laughed softly at his expression and turned a bit to the side. "Zelena, dear? Won't you bring them in?"

It had been a great many years since Rumplestiltskin had laid eyes on Zelena, but the fact that she'd wormed her way into this mess should have been more surprising than it was. Perhaps it was the fact that Bae had mentioned that he and Belle had run into her while escaping the Dark Castle with the book of spells that had brought him to this time in the first place, or maybe it was just that anything that could go wrong seemed to be doing so. Regina had always longed for her mother's love, but Zelena _burned_ for it, and she would burn the worlds if she thought she'd receive it.

Magic stirred and Zelena appeared with Bae in front of her, a knife to his throat and a terrifyingly wicked grin plastered across her face. Emma appeared as well, but the blonde savior was frozen by Zelena or Cora's spell. Even a gagging spell had been placed on her, and Rumplestiltskin did hope she'd given them an earful of grief before they'd finally done it.

"Papa, don't-" Bae started and Zelena turned the knife so that the sharp edge nicked his skin. He stilled, though his eyes sought his father's and Rumplestiltskin somehow managed to keep his careful mask in place. Cora knew how desperate he was to get to his boy, there was no reason to broadcast the fact.

"Now now," Zelena cooed, "be a good boy and don't interrupt. Your father is bargaining for your life."

"Good to see you too, Zelena," the Dark One grumbled, but turned his attentions back on her mother. She was the real ringleader, after all.

"You know what I want, Rumple," Cora purred, stepping close to him still. Her fingers returned to the side of his face and he resisted the urge to pull away this time, remaining absolutely still and in control of his own movements. Her touch moved as she spoke, playing with his hair and down to his shirt collar and then along to the front of his vest, teasing with buttons. He'd made sure that he at least looked the part when he'd teleported over. "I want you. Mind, body, and soul."

"You had me once," Rumplestiltskin answered, "but you gave that up, or is your memory failing you with age? You tore your heart out to keep from loving me, dearie. That's moving on if I've ever seen it."

"Feisty today, aren't we?" the Queen of Hearts chuckled and her fingers clamped down against his side where a particularly deep wound was still in the last stages of healing. He hissed in pain, barely able to cut off the sound and stay on his feet at the same time. "I'd almost think you were angry with me." Her fingers dug into the material of his vest and he could feel her magic creeping a little deeper and he was all but certain the wound reopened. He didn't have a contract to protect him here as he'd sent with the others before, and he had to be careful how much of his magic he used. It was worn thin, but not so thin that he would just take what she was willing to dish out. He forced her spell back hard enough that he stung her fingers.

"Whatever gave you that idea, m'dear?" he growled through clenched teeth. While her grip had loosened a bit, she still had hold of him. Cora leaned in close enough that he thought she might try to kiss him. If she did, he couldn't be sure that he wouldn't at least give it his best effort to kill her then and there. Anger fueled his curse, and his curse was screaming for her end at the moment. He might just be able to comply, regardless of his physical state.

Her lips never touched his though, and she smiled. "The dagger."

"What?"

"You heard me, Rumple. You asked my price and that's it. The Kris Dagger."

"Papa, don't," Bae pleaded from his place again and Zelena hissed another warning.

"I can't."

"Well, if you _want_ to see your boy's blood spilled out across the floor. Zelena, dear?"

"Stop!" Rumplestiltskin barked with a bit too much desperation making it into his voice. She turned, thinking she had found her victory. "When I say I can't, I mean that I _can't_. I don't have it. It's not in my possession."

"You expect me to believe you gave your dagger up?"

"I'm no fool, Cora. I know what you'd have me do if you had it. I'll never claim to be a good man, but even I won't willingly go under your control for the destruction of everything."

"Everything's a bit dramatic, don't you think? Who has it then? Your darling Belle? That shouldn't be too difficult. It might even be fun."

The thought had briefly crossed his mind to give it to her, but it'd been crushed just as quickly. He hadn't had it in him to ask Belle to make the choice that Regina was offering to make. This had been the only way. Cora knew her daughter's resolve and she would have killed Belle to get that dagger from her. "Regina," he answered after a moment, the name rolling off his tongue and setting the first bit of satisfaction inside of him at the look it received.

"You gave Regina your dagger?"

"As angry as you are, you won't kill her even to get it. You want her broken. You can't break her if she's dead."

"It doesn't mean I can't take it from her."

"Go ahead and try then, though you'll never make it. I'm willing to die to protect my son. Are you willing to do the same to kill him?"

Cora glanced back at Baelfire but Rumplestiltskin didn't dare. Instead his dark brown eyes remained fixed on her until she snorted out a breath. "Everything comes at a price. _You_ taught me that."

"A price that both parties are willing to accept."

She tilted her head in thought. "Clever Rumple. Always so clever, aren't you?"

"I do my best."

"Fine. New deal."

"And what is that?"

He didn't like the look in her eyes as she stepped close again. "Do you remember what I said all those years ago when you asked me what my darkest moment was? That moment you told me to pull on to find the magic inside of me?"

Rumplestiltskin said nothing. Of course he remembered, and he didn't want to look into the future to see what she was going to ask of him now.

"I want you to bow at my feet, Rumplestiltskin, just as they did. On your knees or your son _will_ die."

"That's it?" Zelena demanded.

"It's more than that, isn't it, Rumple? Go on now."

Bloodlust shone in her eyes and Rumplestiltskin was sure that if she thought she could have fought with him and won in that moment that she would have been thrilled to spill _his_ blood all over the floor then and there. She hadn't completed whatever terrible plan she had in store, though, so he would live. He had no question on that little detail. The one that was up for grabs was Bae's life. She knew where he was in his own mind: that night on the side of the road when Hordor had forced him to kiss his boot. That terrible night that he still went back to even now when he really needed to egg his curse on, to bring forth more power than usual. He didn't have it in him to kill her that day. In fact, if he were to drop to his knees now as she demanded, he might not have the strength to get back up.

"I knew your power meant more," she whispered and started to motion to Zelena.

At that moment Rumplestiltskin dropped, his injured body aching in protest, and he landed hard on one knee.

_I want to make them bow. I want their kneecaps to crack and freeze on the stones. I want their necks to break from bending. _

That had been her desire so many years before, and now the most powerful man in the Enchanted Forest was on his knees before her. "Is this what you want?" he demanded.

"A little lower would be better." Magic pushed him down and Rumplestiltskin found his face flat against the ground. He didn't dare move, didn't dare stand with Bae's life in the balance, even if he could. Hatred boiled up in him and all he could do was think about the many ways he would eventually end her existence. Everything hurt now and he could feel blood soaking through his clothing from the wound she'd reopened, but none of it compared to the humiliation she knew he was putting him through here.

A dangerous growl left him. "Are we done?"

"Not quite yet," she answered. "Stay there." He saw her shoes move and she was padding over to Bae. She took him by the chin and smiled. "Do you see, dear? You and the others might think that he can save you - and for you he might even try - but in the end that love is his weakness." She chuckled. "Really Rumple, there was a day when nothing would have put you on your knees. _Nothing_. Alright, Zelena."

Rumplestiltskin didn't dare risk a moment more. As soon as the knife was lowered from Bae's neck magic swirled around both he and Emma, pulling them back through the wards that surrounded his home. All three of them landed hard, his magic bucking them the whole way, strained beyond even its great limits. They were left sprawled out on the wooden flooring of the old home, gasping for breath and Emma gave a struggling cough as she sat up. "Some warning next time?" she growled, finding her voice again.

Bae was at his side instantly, helping his father to his feet. "Papa, I-"

He pulled away and bent for his cane that had slipped from his fingers, gripping the gold handle until his knuckles turned white. He couldn't do this now. He couldn't take it. Belle would want to see him and Bae would want to talk, but all he could think about was finding some lonely little corner - if that even existed in his home anymore - to put back the pieces of himself that were shattered in such a way that they might break across the floor at just the wrong touch. He hurt, both inside and out, and his pride had been utterly damaged. He may have kept the dagger from her hands, but Cora had dealt him a more vicious blow than he'd imagined she would without it.

Baelfire reached out and caught him by the sleeve. "Papa, hey, just wait a minute."

"Not now," Rumplestiltskin cut him off and he tried to ignore the hurt look his son gave him as he released his sleeve, surprised at the tone. He started forward again and Bae seemed to shake it off, following him.

"You're hurt. Don't you need-"

"I said not _now_," his papa snapped and started up the stairs. His voice was taught, but when he spoke again he couldn't quite keep the pain out of it. "What I need is to be alone right now, Bae."

Slowly, painfully, he made his way up the stairs and to the shower. Even Regina could wait at this point. All he could think of was trying to find a way to scrub away the humiliation that still clung to him like mud. The water was so hot that it burned his skin when he stepped into it, the rush leaving him dizzy. He swayed and caught himself against the tiles. Somehow he needed to find a way to catch ahold of his composure before he stepped back out. If he didn't, she'd won, and if there was one thing Rumplestiltskin was certain of it was that he refused to let Cora win this round.

* * *

TBC

A/N: A little bit longer chapter to go into the weekend with. And an angry Rumple. A very angry Rumple. Oh dear.

So I'm working on the last chapter of this story and it's giving me all sorts of hell in ending. Forty-two chapters plus the prologue at the beginning seems to be my number. Robin4 predicted 42 chapters and apparently she was spot on. Go Robin! :)

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Six: This Happy Day, in which Bae pushes his papa, Wendy's brothers come to Storybrooke, and Henry turns twelve.


	37. This Happy Day

**Chapter Thirty-Six: This Happy Day**

When he'd been young it had been rare for his papa to be cross with him. They'd been close and Baelfire had been a good boy for the most part. Every now and again - usually when he did something dangerously foolish as young boys often do - Bae had found himself on the receiving end of a very put out father who didn't quite know how to express his own fears and anxieties in a way that a young Bae understood. He always grew very quiet, very withdrawn, and it had killed Baelfire a little inside in those few times he'd experienced it. It hadn't happened often, but each time it did Bae was a little more convinced that it should never happen again.

As he watched his father limp away, looking worn and tired, he knew just what he was on the receiving end of again. His papa was cross, and while Bae knew that he likely had overestimated his own abilities that day - okay, so there was no _likely_ about it - he'd done it for his papa. The others often didn't bother with the man buried beneath the curse and he was sure that they didn't understand that this world limited him in ways that he was never limited in the Enchanted Forest. Bae wasn't entirely sure how great those limitations were, but he knew that his papa _could_ die here, which was more than the others seemed to admit to when they thought that they needed something from him. Bae wasn't willing to let Rumplestiltskin take it that far again. He knew his father had it in him, but he'd be damned if he lost him again.

"Dad! Mom! You're okay!" Henry cried as he rounded a corner, the rest of the family on his heels. He launched himself into their arms and Bae breathed a strained sigh. No, he reminded himself firmly, he wouldn't let go of any of them.

"Yeah, we're okay," Emma answered as she hugged their son.

"What happened?" David demanded, worry colouring his voice.

"It's fine. We're fine," his daughter assured him.

"I'm going to go check on a Papa," Bae murmured and didn't feel quite as bad at leaving Emma to face her parents alone as he might should have. He didn't have to have his father's foresight to know this wouldn't be a pleasant conversation for either of them.

He heard Regina getting involved with all of her usual bluntness, but he forced himself to keep climbing the stairs. If he let his father stew too long there was no telling how this would turn out.

Bae knocked lightly against the bedroom door before pushing it open. His papa was nowhere in sight, but steam poured out of the half-closed bathroom door and he could hear the shower water running. He sighed, moving into the room to wait. The fact that Belle hadn't followed him upstairs meant that she knew something had happened. No matter what time he met her in, he found her ability to read the situation incredible, because he knew that his father was not an easy man to read even on his best days. He hid behind more walls and protections than any fortress he could have built, and he refused to show what he considered weakness even to those closest to him. It drove his son crazy, but so did many, many things. Right now it was just at the top of the list.

The water switched off in the bathroom and Bae perked from where he'd taken a seat on the edge of the bed. He waited a moment, hearing shuffling inside, and finally took a step forward. He would keep his calm, he swore. He would explain what he'd been thinking, what he'd meant to do, and Rumplestiltskin was bound to understand… eventually. It was for family. He'd been the one to teach him what real sacrifice was, after all, even if it wasn't something that had actually happened in this timeline.

"Papa?" he called, announcing his presence in the room. He didn't miss the frustrated sigh from behind the door. There was a little more rustling before the elder man emerged, less put together than he had been to come get them, but he certainly didn't look as bad as Bae worried he might. The lines in his face were a little deeper and he moved while leaning heavily on his cane, but he looked like he was improving at least. "Listen-"

"I told you to let me be for you're own sake, Baelfire," his father snapped, moving stiffly by him.

"Listen, I get that you're pissed," Bae began again and found his father turning on him, features carefully masked to appear calm even against the brewing storm beneath.

"Pissed?" he echoed. "Is that what you think? Do you even know what you could have done?"

His tone struck a nerve and Bae felt his own temper rising to match his father's. "I was trying to help _you_!"

"Help? Is that what that was meant to be? You really have no idea what that woman would be capable of if she had my dagger. She'd have had me kill you, Bae. You and likely Belle and Henry and anyone else that either of us care about! I wouldn't have had a _choice_, and you _know_ that."

"You'd have never given it to her, Papa," Bae protested. "_I_ knew that."

The utterly heartbroken expression that took over his father's entire being felt like a physical blow, and one that made Bae stagger back a step when he spoke in an equally hurt voice. "For you I would have."

"Papa, you just said it would have been pointless," his son tried to reason, but his voice was calmer now, all the bite having worked its way out.

"I know, but I'd have had to try if the option was there. I would have been desperate."

"That's why you left it with Regina."

"Yes. I'd have fought her it came down to it, capable of winning or not." He squeezed his eyes closed, looking as if he were hanging onto his composure by a mere thread. "I can't... I can't lose you, Bae. Not again."

Baelfire reached out and Rumplestiltskin instantly took the offered hand, pulling his son close to him. "I can't lose you either, Papa. That's why I went."

His father snorted a soft laugh, still holding tight. "Quite a pair we make."

"Maybe it'll just keep both of us alive?"

He felt some of the tension slide away at the words. "I hope so."

"How're we going to beat her, Papa?"

His father finally released him, an expression in his eyes that Bae didn't like one but, but he understood. "We don't have a choice, Bae. We will kill her."

"She's raising an army with magic users and people whose heart she's stolen. We can't fight that. You know we can't kill our friends. Killian saved my life today. She was going to kill me and-"

"He's not the only one she's holding. Your friend August died today."

Bae felt a chill run through him. "She killed him or…?" He didn't want to ask. He didn't want to hear that Cora had forced August to attack someone and one of their own had killed him. He knew Emma's parents didn't have it in them and the responsibility - heavy as it was - would fall to either Rumplestiltskin or Regina who were seen as detached enough to do it. If it was his son's life in the balance, he might be right there with them, though it would leave a hole in his heart that he knew couldn't be filled after.

"Cora crushed his heart after he delivered her message. She was just waiting for the right time. Apparently young Mr Booth had jumped in to save Ruby and Cora was making her point."

"How do we fight her without killing people we care about? It's not their fault."

"Of course it's not, and that's what Cora is counting on. Bae, I'm going to do everything I can, but the reality of the situation is that she has a weapon that can kill us all. Henry alone would escape it and he'd be left alone. Perhaps Emma could get him out, but that's it, and Cora would kill them."

"I won't let that happen."

"Good. You'll need that resolve, because unless I can come up with an alternative, this might become a nasty business very quickly. Don't mistake what I'm saying, son, I don't _want_ to kill these people that she's taken, but if it's what must be done to protect my family, I will."

"But you'll look for another way?"

"Until I can't any longer and I'm forced into action, yes."

Bae managed a smile at that. "That's all I can ask from you. Listen, about today, in the town hall…"

"I don't want to talk about that."

"Papa, I'm just trying to say that I know what it meant to you. And thank you."

"It's you Bae. There's no thanks needed. I'll do what I need to to save your life every time."

"Same."

His papa smiled sadly at him, the look reminding him of when he'd thought he was nothing more than a spinner with no options left. "Never my life for yours, do you hear me?"

Baelfire pulled in a deep breath. "I hear you, Papa, and I wish that you'd promise me the same."

"I can't, Bae. I've only broken one deal in my life, and should it come down to it, I'd hate to break another with you, because you are the most precious thing in my life. I'll do what has to be done. No matter what it costs me."

* * *

"I was wondering when you'd be down for it," Regina said without bothering to rise from the chair she was seated in. "Thought maybe you'd gone upstairs and passed out."

Rumplestiltskin chuckled. One of the things he enjoyed the most about his and his former student's strange relationship was that she really didn't care to know the details. As long as he came out alive and useful on the other end, Regina would be happy enough. "Not quite so easily done in, my dear. If you please?"

The Evil Queen smirked and the dagger appeared in her hand. Rumplestiltskin felt the pull on his soul as she held it, fingers clutching the hilt tightly enough that it was a little uncomfortable. She was revelling in the power at that moment. She controlled the Dark One, and in that same moment he wondered if he'd made a mistake. He wasn't sure anyone would try to stop her from controlling him - save perhaps Bae and Belle - if they thought she was commanding him to do what they deemed was _right_. He could see the scenario play out and he wasn't entirely sure if it was a possible future or his own screaming paranoia. Either way it was horrifying.

"Oh the revenge I could have for all the frustration you've put me through over the years," she groused, sighing as she held the knife out. "Take it before I decide to indulge."

Rumplestiltskin reached for it, and as it left her grasp he felt the exchange and a weight lifted, the images dispersing. His soul might be bound to the curse, but he held the dagger now. He was as free as he'd ever be under it. "Thank you," he said honestly and received a quirked eyebrow for his efforts. He frowned. "Don't get used to it."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Rumple. So how was my mother? Did you leave her in one piece?"

"Sadly so," he answered and limped his way around. "She's biding her time, I fear."

"She does do that, but so are we. How're you feeling?"

The question was honest enough and Rumplestiltskin let a dangerous smile tilt his lips. He felt better after the shower, as if it really had done something to burn some of the weariness away. The wounds were mostly healed by this point with a few exceptions, including the one that she'd managed to pull back open. It would take another week or two to fully be back to himself, and he wasn't sure they had that. "She hasn't killed me yet," he answered after a moment and Regina seemed to understand what all that implied.

Her head nodded slowly and she pulled in a deep breath. "And if we don't have the time to wait?"

"Then we'll have to be more clever than your mother."

"Why the hell did you teach her?" Regina asked quietly and Rumplestiltskin frowned. He'd asked himself the same question many times and he told her the same lie he had told himself.

"I needed to make sure I remained close to have access to you. You were always going to be the one to cast my curse, so…"

"And it had nothing to do with whatever relationship you two had?" The frown tugged a little deeper and she shrugged. "I don't need nor want details. I just need to know that you're in this till the end."

"There's question?"

"I need to hear you say it, Rumple."

"I'm in this until it's finished."

"Good. I hear your house is about to get fuller again."

The Dark One twitched. "How so? There're no more beds left to fill."

"Emma found that girl's brothers. Apparently she is good for something after all."

"Don't be sour, Regina. You're not enemies anymore. I always knew that the person to stand opposing to the savior would spark a battle that only one could survive in."

"And you were betting on her coming out of it, weren't you?"

"I do tend to choose a winner, but it's been apparent for some time that you weren't going to be the one standing against her."

"How long?"

He shrugged. "I've had glimpses here and there. Had you and Henry not found each other, though, I fear we'd be in a much different set of circumstances. That boy saved you."

Rumplestiltskin watched the Evil Queen's irritated mask melt into that of a mother's that loved her son. "Yes he did. Speaking of Henry, I need a favour. Call it repaying me for holding onto your dagger and giving it back."

"Calling that in awful quick, aren't we? What is it that you want?"

"Henry's birthday is in two days. Before Emma and your son decided to run off and get themselves captured, we'd been talking about what we can do for it. Snow seems to think it'll cheer everyone up and give them hope or some nonsense, but-"

"It's Henry. Of course we'll celebrate it."

"Right, and he's been cooped up in the house since we got back. We were thinking Granny's, but I don't want to dangle him out there and tempt Mother any more than she already is."

"Granny's would be difficult to protect with people coming in and out like that. We'd need something already set." He noticed the pointed look she was giving him. "Oh no. I know how Snow and Charming handle these affairs. I already said I don't want the whole damn town into my home. Haven't I suffered enough people here?"

"Your shop has the groundwork, and the smaller space can help to limit the people."

Regina didn't want a crowd any more than Rumplestiltskin. Crowds made it difficult to control every aspect of the situation and protect those they loved. Cora wouldn't waste an opportunity to lash out at the boy that she thought had turned her daughter against her. His wards were the strongest around his home, but he didn't want them there, and if they tried to keep Henry in much longer he was going to sneak out through a window. "The shop it is," he agreed finally. It really was their best option, though he paused, shooting his former student a withering look. "Don't let Snow take this over. She's not to move anything or decorate anything without my say so. Things are as they are for a reason."

"You don't have to tell me."

"But we do have to tell her. Preferably without killing her?"

"You don't sound sure of that," Regina quipped, finally rising from her seat.

Rumplestiltskin's lips tugged into a shadow of a smile. He said nothing as he turned and left the room, his dagger once again in his possession and feeling a bit more like his usual self.

* * *

People were still disappearing all over Storybrooke, and Cora made sure the citizens of the town knew. Fear swept over them and Henry felt a little guilty that they were having a celebration for him. Grandma Snow had said it would give hope, though, and that they should go on with it. It did give him a chance to see people like Ruby and Granny, as well as some of the dwarves. Leroy still hadn't roused, so Happy and Sleepy were at his bedside on their shift. Doc was still being held by the Queen of Hearts and they hadn't heard what all that entailed.

It also gave him a chance to get to know John and Michael. Wendy's younger - now elder, in a way - brothers had made it into Storybrooke the night before. Baelfire had gone to the town line to meet them and had explained to them the dangers that they faced there. While Henry thought his dad was trying to convince them to take Wendy and go, avoiding the dangers that they had to face, it only seemed to make the brothers more determined to stay. They'd promised to talk it over with Wendy, but they were still there the next morning with no indication that they planned on leaving. They would stay and offer whatever support they could. It had been Wendy that explained that family doesn't leave each other behind, and Baelfire had pulled her into a tight hug.

That had been that morning. It was late afternoon now and Grandpa Gold and Regina had transported them to the shop instead of making Henry stay in the house. That would have been the best birthday gift that they could have given, but he had spotted a pile of presents on one of the countertops and a cake that Grandma Snow and Belle had been working on all day. Granny brought the food and for just a little while it felt like they weren't fighting for their lives.

"So are these people all your family?" Wendy asked as she came to stand next to him. Her brothers were discussing something with Bae in the corner and Tinker Bell had joined in, but that seemed to be so that she could avoid talking to Regina. That was still on his list of things to ask about when he had more time.

"Sort of," Henry answered, gaze sweeping over the crowd of sometimes-allies. "Emma and Baelfire are my birth parents, but I only met them both pretty recently. Regina raised me, so she's my mom too. Then there's Grandma Snow and Gramps, Grandpa Gold and Belle is basically family too. Granny and Ruby might as well be. They're old family friends. Same with the dwarves. It's like having seven awesome uncles!"

Wendy giggled. "Bae always said that he wanted a family. It's good to see that he has such a big one. You too, Henry. You have a lot of people that love you."

"I do," Henry agreed. "I have the best family in the world, even if they argue sometimes."

"They come together for you. That's what's important."

Henry watched the crowd of people that had gathered in his grandfather's shop. Some had been enemies, others had been friends, and some had even been willing to lay down their life so he could live. This was his family, and no matter what they said or how they protested, they were all his heroes. "Yeah, I guess so."

Wendy's smile was shy. "I'm afraid I have a confession. I haven't gotten you anything for your birthday."

"You don't have to worry. I'm just glad you're here and you have your brothers back."

"Well, I'd like to give you something. It _is_ your birthday, after all and you _did_ save me."

Henry blinked owlishly at her. He liked Wendy, but he had to admit that sometimes he just didn't understand girls. He'd asked his dad about it once since they'd been back and Bae had just chuckled at him and told him to give it time. Time for what, he wasn't quite sure. He was about to ask her what she meant when Wendy leaned forward suddenly and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Happy birthday, Henry," she said and he felt his whole face heat up.

"Thanks?" he managed and found his brain drawing a blank on anything else.

Her cheeks had gone vaguely pink as well and she murmured something about going to speak with Tink.

"Quite a birthday," a voice chuckled from behind and Henry felt the blush deepen and the strangest feeling of being caught - but in what he wasn't sure - washed over him as he turned and his grandfather laughed again. "I'm only teasing you, lad."

Despite the awkwardness Henry felt himself relax into a smile. "I know, Grandpa. I'm glad you're feeling better. I didn't know for sure if you'd come, even if it is your shop."

"I wouldn't miss this for the worlds."

"I'm really glad I wasn't your undoing."

Rumplestiltskin reached forward and ruffled Henry's hair affectionately. It had taken a while, but he was slowly becoming more and more comfortable with openly showing that affection, even around others that weren't part of their immediate family. It was getting to the point that Henry had to really think to come up with a time when Mr Gold hadn't been his grandpa. Oh, he knew it hadn't been that long since his dad sort of just fell into Storybrooke and rocked their little world on its axis, but it was nice. He had grandparents, parents, and more extended family than he knew what to do with, and Wendy had been right. They came together despite their differences for him.

Without too much warning Henry leaned in and carefully wrapped his arms around his grandpa's middle. The elder man chuckled. "You're not going to hurt me, lad."

Henry grinned as he tightened his grip just a little. There might be presents stacked up, but this was what he wanted. His family. As long as he had them he would be the happiest boy in any world that existed.

* * *

Candles and cake and a laughing twelve year old. Emma Swan hated to admit it, but she felt pretty good right then. There was that nagging feeling that something would go wrong, of course, but that was only because it would. As she looked out on their patchwork family she felt another certainty bubble up. It said that they could win against this.

"You look pretty happy."

Emma turned, finding David at her side. "Not allowed?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow and it pulled a grin from him and he chuckled.

"Very allowed," he countered. "It's just... Well, you can get a little focused in sometimes. Not that you don't come by it naturally, but a lot has happened. I'm just glad to see your smile."

Emma thought on what he'd said a moment before loosing a long breath. "You're right. A lot has happened and a lot _is_ happening. It's kind of overwhelming, but... Well we got Henry back, he's happy and not possessed by Pan's crazy shadow thing. I think Neal and I might finally be... coming to... Why are you looking at me like that?"

David was grinning. "Nothing. Just glad that you're happy."

"Glad that I'm happy or glad that I'm happy with Neal?"

"Yes?"

Emma laughed, rolling her eyes.

"I'm just glad you found your good moments, that's all."

"What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "It's easy to get bogged down by the bad - and we've seen some truly terrible lately - but it's the good moments that keep us fighting through the bad. They give us hope."

"I guess it does," she murmured as she watched Henry on the hunt for his present from his other grandfather. Perhaps _anything in the store_ might have been a bit dangerous when it came to Gold's shop, but if he chose something too wild then Gold and Neal were dealing with it.

"We've got a crazy family, don't we?" her father asked with a chuckle.

"But it's a family. Henry won't have to grow up like Neal and me. It's all kind of crazy, but at least he knows we love him."

David reached out and pulled her into a side hug, kissing the top of her head. "You too, Emma."

"Me too what?"

"We've always loved you, even when we couldn't reach you."

A smile, a little sad but true, perked her lips and Emma returned the embrace and leaned against him. "I know, and I think somewhere deep down I've always known. I never stopped looking for you guys."

"Mom, look what Grandpa Gold let me have!" Henry called over, waving an old, ratty ball in the air. It looked like it might have been old when the curse dragged it through, because she was pretty sure it wasn't from the Land Without Magic. "It was Dad's when he was a kid. Wasn't it, Dad?"

"Just keep it out of the street, buddy," Neal warned and their son nodded his agreement.

"At least it wasn't a wand or something," David chuckled and his daughter rolled her eyes.

"Just what we need. Henry learning magic."

"Well, I guess if Bae learned magic from Neverland..."

"Don't say it. Just don't say it."

They laughed and the festivities continued. For one brief afternoon they could be happy. She knew that this happy day was their brief calm in the eye of the storm, but it was theirs, and she'd hold onto it with all she had. David was right. It gave her hope.

* * *

TBC

Notes: Henry broke my heart in last night's episode. Absolutely broke my heart. I'd been fussing over the fact that he didn't go after Regina, so I was very, very excited to see that bit happen. That kid is awesome.

On a somewhat unrelated note, my roommate and I were watching the Hunchback of Notre Dame over the weekend and I've come to the conclusion that Clopin needs to be in Once at some point. I really feel like he and Rumple would have gotten on well in the Enchanted Forest. Just saying...

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Seven: What Must Be Done, in which Cora tips the scales in a terrifying and deadly way.


	38. What Must Be Done

**Chapter Thirty-Seven: What Must be Done**

She hadn't realized just how cooped up she'd felt. Snow had always loved the outdoors, even before her days as a bandit. The the last couple of days they hadn't even been out to go see Leroy after Emma and Bae had been taken, but there had been something akin to quiet since then - with one or two exceptions - so she really did think that all this hiding had to stop. How was she supposed to convince her people that everything would be alright if she was held up in Rumplestiltskin's home and hiding from their enemy? Anyway, if she was feeling cooped up, she didn't even want to think about how David was feeling. Perhaps that's why he'd so quickly agreed to a stop-off by the hospital.

"It's not like we're going to go stoking the fire or anything," David said, shooting an apologetic look towards their daughter that met it with an irritated glare. That hadn't been a pretty conversation, and one that they had ended in them being firmly reminded that they really couldn't get too mad at her over after the many, many situations that they'd rushed into.

"You don't have to stoke the fire with Cora," Regina countered, "you just have to dangle yourselves out there. Listen, I know I'm not the most patient person here, but even I realize that we're inching towards being able to fight back. There's no reason to-"

"Are you _worried_ about us, Regina?" Snow asked sweetly and watched her step-mother's guards come up. That would get her off their back. The so-called Evil Queen couldn't let anyone think she was going soft on the woman she'd declared vengeance on for years now, even if Snow knew better in her own heart.

"No, I'm just trying to convey how utterly stupid and thoughtless this is. The dwarf is unconscious. It's not like he'll know you're there anyway."

"Regina," David tried to argue, but Snow held up her hand.

"We're going. It's two fewer people that you and Gold need to worry about getting back to the house. We're waiting for him to be back to normal, right? It's not like we're not armed in case something happens."

Regina eyed Snow's bow and arrows as if they hardly mattered. Perhaps she didn't think they did, but Snow wasn't the fool that the elder woman took her for. She and Baelfire had taken advantage of being in the shop to coat the arrows with squid ink. It was the only reason she had them there, but let Regina think she'd planned this from the beginning.

"Fine, but I'm not coming to rescue you when you get caught, do you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, Regina," Snow answered with a bright smile. No one else was bothering to complain, and really the former bandit knew that it showed how far she and Regina really had come. The older woman was worried for her, even if she didn't want to admit it aloud.

David chuckled at her side as they exited the shop, the wards giving to allow them passage. "You really know how to rial her."

"She'll get over it. We haven't been to see Grumpy in days. I don't even want to think about what that vile woman has done to poor Doc. The sooner Rumplestiltskin is on his feet, the sooner we can free him."

Her husband nodded, hand going to the hilt of his sword. He was good with the gun, but he was much more comfortable with a sword. After Neverland he'd never switched back.

They were halfway down the main street when a screeching sound made them both look to the sky. The streets were empty, as they'd become upon Cora's usurpation of power, but the pair both saw what looked like a large, winged animal clinging to clock tower in the distance. "What is that?" Snow managed.

"I'm not sure we want to find out," Charming answered as he pulled his sword from the sheath, reading it.

The creature cried out angrily as it swooped down. It's feathery wings stretched wide and its claws reached for them as it dove. Snow and Charming darted to opposite sides and the princess rolled to her feet, pulling an arrow from the quiver. It was faster than she expected and its clawed foot caught the top of the bow and sent the arrow flying uselessly away.

"Snow!" David cried and was on his feet, rushing the flying monkey.

The creature caught his sword with an impressive display of strength. Charming held tight, struggling with it as Snow found her footing and took aim. She loosed the arrow - or meant to - but found it suspended inches from where it had begun. "What...?"

"Oh, don't look too baffled, dear. It's just magic," a voice chirped and Snow turned, finding herself looking at a woman she'd never met before. She stood with a condescending smile plastered across her painted lips and she was dressed in all black with hints of green laced through. Her smile faded as she studied Snow back and she turned her nose up as if she'd smelled something foul. "My, you really are the fairest of them all, aren't you?"

"Who are you?"

The smile returned with a giggle that set Snow's teeth on edge. "I'm Zelena. Cora's eldest daughter, and Mother would like a word with you."

"Snow!" David called out, still fighting with the monkey.

"Don't mind us," Zelena said cheerfully and waved her hand towards him. Power struck hard, sending Snow's husband flying. "We're just having a little girl chat over here." She turned her blue eyes back on Snow. "We really shouldn't keep mother waiting."

"She wants my heart," the dark haired princess breathed.

"What a clever girl. It won't save you though."

Snow risked one glance back at David and knew she she wasn't fast enough to escape this woman. She could just barely see him stirring as she was dragged away, magic pulling her from the main street and to Cora.

* * *

"She did _what_?" Regina roared. She could believe it. When she'd given Snow hell before leaving even she thought she'd been a little paranoid. It had always been Regina's hatred for Snow, not Cora's. Though her mother had told her a few things in the weeks she'd lived with her in Storybrooke - never all together and never in any order that would have been noticeable at the time - that now fell into place. Eva. Cora had _hated_ Snow's mother Eva. Regina wasn't sure why, but she was willing to bet that the hatred didn't stop at the queen's daughter. It likely was passed on to her daughter, and then to her son. Why had she ever trusted that foul woman?

"It wasn't Snow's fault, Regina," David growled. He looked terrible. Apparently he'd gone a round or two with a flying monkey before Zelena had taken him out of play. Regina really hadn't known much about her elder sister - with the exception of the fact that Cora did _not_ want to talk about her - but if everything fit between what Bae had said and what David had described, her estranged sister was the Wicked Witch of the West.

"Well I _did_ warn her, didn't I?" the Evil Queen shot back mostly out of habit. Nothing good could come of this.

"Regina, that's not helping," Baelfire said in a slightly exasperated tone.

"We're going to save her, right Mom?" Henry asked. He and Wendy had been told to wait upstairs once David had come stumbling in, but neither of them would have a moment of it. So there her son stood, listening to everything and the weight of the world on his young shoulders when it really wasn't his weight to bear. It was theirs.

"Of course we are, sweetie," Regina sighed. How could she say anything differently?

"She's been planning this," Rumplestiltskin said from his high-backed chair that reminded his former student so much of that old chair in the great hall of the Dark Castle. He sat there, elbows propped on either armrest, fingers steepled, and keen eyes sweeping the room to look for a reaction. He was every bit the man that had taught her, yet so very different here. It made her wonder what would have happened if things had been different. If she hadn't tried to kill her step-daughter and if she hadn't cast Rumple's curse. Would they have eventually found themselves sitting at the round table with those fools that Snow and Charming kept so close? They were as good as doing so now, even though it was the Dark One's living room in Storybrooke rather than Snow's castle in Charming's kingdom.

Rumplestiltskin's dark eyes then swiveled over to her. "We've been wondering what the delay is. Your mother knows nothing of mercy. Wasn't like she was trying to give us time."

Regina hummed to herself. "You think Mary Margaret was her goal all along?"

"I think Eva's line is something she wants to put an end to perhaps," he said and Regina wished that he wouldn't confirm her fears so bluntly. She wrapped her arm around Henry.

"Why are we just sitting around here?" Emma demanded. "She wants to kill my mother, we're sure as hell not going to let her go after Henry-"

"There's still the problem of the scroll," Belle pointed out sensibly.

"So we'll steal it back! Seriously, how hard can it be?"

"Harder by the moment," Rumplestiltskin said as he stood.

"I don't like that look, Rumple," Regina bit out. "It's a look that says you haven't been telling us something. So help me, if you've been keeping something-"

Rumplestiltskin stiffened as eyes turned on him. He _had_ been hiding something, that impish little bastard. Regina was going to kill him. Then she was going to find a way to resurrect him, make him help her kill her mother, and then kill him again for good measure.

"It's not so much hiding as working through," he groused. "You know there were certain demands in the magic that was used to create the curse that brought us here. The price that you had to pay to cast it, Regina, and certain bits I had to meet to write it."

"What are you getting at, Gold?" David growled, patience apparently waning.

"Cora is talented in manipulating spells. She may have found a hidden thread deep within the curse itself to have tied it to herself."

Emma was standing by this point. "What does that mean?"

"It means that we can't just take it from her. The curse would view her somewhere in between the caster and one that has stolen it. She can't reverse it, but she's likely worked in some very detailed protection spells around it. I'm still working on ways around those."

"Can we kill her?" David asked and Regina patted Henry on the back.

"Upstairs."

"Why? It's not like I don't know how this is going to end."

"Yes, but there's no reason for you to listen to us talk about it."

"She's right, kid," Emma agreed. "Up you go."

Rumplestiltskin allowed the conversation to pause until his grandson was out of the room, followed closely by Wendy and her brothers as well. They didn't have the stomach for this, and for that Regina couldn't blame them. They were children, after all, and she hoped her own son kept his innocence as long as possible.

Once Henry was out of earshot, Rumple continued. "Possibly. It depends how deep she's dug in. I've been looking into it the last couple of days, since we got back from the town hall."

"So we learned a couple of things there," Baelfire said and his father shot him a look, but didn't deny it. Well, at least Regina knew where Henry had gotten _that_ particular trait from.

"So what can we do to reverse what she's done and take it from her?" Regina asked pointedly.

"I don't know yet."

"It's _your_ curse, Rumple."

Rumplestiltskin sighed and leaned heavily on his cane. He was on the mend, but far from his usual strength. "When I have something, you'll be the first to know."

* * *

Snow had been transported by magic before, but Zelena's was jolting. Beyond that, she simply left her to sit in a room that had been locked from the outside, the only window high and far too small to climb out of, and seemingly alone. She hadn't seen Cora anywhere yet, nor had she seen any of her friends that the terrible witch had taken. She'd tried banging on the door - once she found it - only to find that wouldn't give. The whole place was likely teaming with magic.

She didn't know how long she'd been sitting there and waiting for _something_ to happen when the door finally opened. A small, round shadow filled the frame and Snow had to squint against the sudden light. She was on her feet in an instant though, ready for whatever came at her. Finally, her eyes adjusted, and she saw a very familiar face attached to the little woman who was holding a tray of what might have been considered food. "_Johanna_?"

"Snow?" the equally familiar voice answered. The platter crashed to the floor and they were embracing each other in an instant. Snow hadn't seen the woman that had all but raised her in years now. She hadn't even known she was in Storybrooke. When they parted, Johanna reached up and thumbed away a stray tear that was trailing down the dark haired princess' cheek. "Oh Snow. I'd hoped she wouldn't take you."

"Well, she hasn't beaten me yet," Snow White answered stubbornly. "You're here, and that door is open. We can escape."

"Snow, she has my heart…."

"Then we'll steal it back. She doesn't have mine, and I know there's an entrance to Regina's vault somewhere in her office. All we have to do is find it."

The elder woman looked ready to argue again but her resolve crumbled under Snow's beaming smile. "If something happens, if she gives me an order... Snow, I would never want to hurt you."

"You would never hurt me, Johanna. You were the only mother I had when mine died. I trust you with everything I have."

* * *

"Is it time, Mother?" Zelena purred, peeking into the mirror that Cora was using to spy on Eva's daughter.

"Patience, dear," Cora answered. "Everything in due time."

Zelena tilted her head in question. Her mother had told her about that terrible brat Eva and everything she'd done to her. Oh, her little pet magician had told her a tidbit or two, but she understood her mother's rage now. She'd been denied her place just as Zelena had by Regina. They would make Snow White suffer, then they would kill Emma and her boy. Regina would suffer with the death of her child and her elder sister would let her stew in it before she ended her miserable existence. It was quite the happy ending for mother and daughter.

"What do you plan to so with Rumple?" Cora's elder daughter asked after a moment. "He seemed quite determined when he was here."

"He's limited right now, my dear. Rumplestiltskin will be putting all of his strength he's managed to get back into saving Snow."

Zelena turned up her nose. "Why would he bother? She's served his purpose."

"Because Rumple is getting sentimental in his old age. Snow is his grandson's grandmother, so to him, if he likes it or not, she's family."

"And he'll leave everything else vulnerable."

Cora smiled darkly. "The man that would never bow to anyone, that would kill for the mere suggestion, dropped to his knees for his son. When he and the others come for Snow, I want you to break through his wards. Do you think you can do that?"

"Rumple never did give me the credit I deserved. Of course, Mother. Give me time and I can unravel anything."

"That's my girl. Bring me Rumple's dagger and Eva's great-grandchild. That bloodline has poisoned our family too long. It's time to put an end to it."

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had been through every book, dug through every memory, and had chased down every alternative he could come up with in the short time he had to find a fix to this problem that Snow White had landed herself in. He was clever, he knew, but usually when his own cleverness failed him his curse would step in and provide an answer. It often wasn't an answer that anyone with a hero complex - and he seemed to be surrounded by them as of late - would appreciate, but it was always an option.

The option his curse whispered now was pointless though, and even he was not willing to go down that particular road. As often as they'd butted heads over the years, he was not willing to sacrifice Regina to buy time. If that was the best his curse could come up with, he had to be better than it, just as Belle was convinced that he was.

His main issue was that with the wards Cora had set up it had limited the people that actually could take the scroll to he and Regina, and sending Regina in alone _would_ be suicide for her. He'd spent the last two hours locked behind his own personal wards in which only two people could walk through. He had searched through the future at every angle he could think of in sending Regina in alone to snatch the curse back. The only scenario that didn't end in her death was the one where she destroyed the scroll, but the price for that would be Henry being left behind, and that had been why Baelfire had come back in the first place. He couldn't let his son down like that and he refused to let his grandson grow up without his parents. Nor could he let Regina die.

Not that he would do a damn bit of good if he tried to go in with her. He was still fighting to get his strength back from his and Cora's first found with the dark fairy dust. It had hit him harder than he'd thought possible, and while his magic had patched up the physical wounds for the most part, it was still tied up and exhausted. Using Regina as a distraction would be risky on a level he wasn't sure that he was willing to risk, especially since his visions didn't seem to want to cooperate with that scenario.

Rumplestiltskin slammed the book in his hands closed and threw it clear across the room in a fit of frustration, nearly hitting Belle in the process. She pulled back from where she was slipping into their bedroom, narrowly missing the flying book as she entered the room. She turned a questioning look on him. "Did it offend you?"

Her love snorted, pulling himself from the chair on the far side of the sitting room. "Yes. It didn't have what I needed."

"Not the book's fault," she reminded him softly and he winced. He'd have preferred her to come in at any other time than that. She knew his temper well enough, but it was a weakness he'd rather even she did not see. He'd learned some larger degree of control after being buried under Gold for so many years, but he was hardly a patient man.

Belle crossed the room to meet him where he stood. Carefully she pushed him back down into the chair, circled around behind it, and her hands lingered on his shoulders, fingers finally moving to work at the tension there. He sighed, his body giving even if his mind could not. "Tell me what you've found," she prompted.

He closed his eyes, his own voice sounding distant to him as he explained the walls he'd hit. Belle made small noises of acknowledgement as he spoke, explaining the way the wards were set up and how there seemed to be no good answer to saving Henry's grandmother. "This war will happen unless we shatter the curse, but I haven't found a viable way of doing that." He tried to keep the fact that he'd prefer to stay in Storybrooke out of the equation entirely, though he knew it influenced it. There were things about this life that he'd grown very fond of over the years. His shop and their home, the fact that it was the world that Bae had seemed to love certainly had its place there as well.

"Well, I'm very pleased to hear you're not willing to make sacrifices of people's lives," Belle said as she leaned forward and kissed his cheek, "but is there nothing else? I know you, Rumplestiltskin. You're clever and resourceful. There has to be some way."

He sighed, slumping down into the chair. He tried again to reach for the possible future where he was the one that stole the scroll away, but it fluttered just out of his reach. He wasn't sure if Cora could kill him without his dagger, even in this land, but he really didn't want to leave that to chance. He sighed, Belle's presence promising to give him strength. Her hands stilled on his shoulders and she leaned forward, arms wrapped loosely around him in a light embrace from behind. He leaned into her, drawing from her courage.

"If you found yourself in an impossible situation, what would you do?"

Belle seemed to think on that for a moment. "When I was little and I was afraid," she murmured, "my mother always told me the same thing, and it's stuck with me. She said that I needed to have the courage of the stars. She said that no matter what the cost, they bravely lit the sky. I remember that every time we face an impossible situation. If they can burn bright and have courage, then so can I. It's a little silly, maybe, but it's what I hold to."

Rumplestiltskin made a small noise of acknowledgement. Stars also burned themselves out eventually, but that light could travel further than a former spinner from the Frontlands could really wrap his mind around. It lit the night for others long after its death. While Belle's mother may not have said it in so many words, that was what the story had meant. Even in the face of death, one should show the courage of the stars.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"Did that help?"

"I think so. I'll need to speak to Regina about it, but together I think we can get our hands on it."

"I knew you'd come up with a plan," his love murmured and kissed his cheek.

Rumplestiltskin took hold of her hand and pulled her around. She circled the seat, never letting go of his hand, and he stood to meet her. "I love you," he confessed softly. "I will always love you, no matter what happens."

She kissed him again, one hand still in his and the other came to the side of his face, fingers playing with his hair. He pulled her closer and for that moment they were all that mattered in the world. When they finally broke she looked up at him, those clear blue eyes full of love for him and he found himself wondering - certainly not for the first time - just what he'd done to deserve it.

"I love you too," she whispered. "We'll get through this just as we've gotten through everything. Cora won't be our end, nor will she win. I have faith in that."

He couldn't find it in his battered heart to agree, so Rumplestiltskin leaned forward and kissed her forehead, not willing to risk his own voice. He loved this woman and she gave him strength. If it came down to it, it would be that love he would cling to to give him the strength to do what must be done, no matter the cost.

* * *

They were unarmed and deep within the enemy's stronghold, but Snow was certain that she'd been in worse situations. She wasn't just going to leave Johanna there, and if she wanted to make sure that they both got out safely, she had to get her heart first. She'd seen what Cora did with them, and innocent as Aurora had been, it was that evil witch drove her to betray them and nothing had been able to stop it. She wouldn't risk putting Johanna into the same situation.

Snow hissed a warning as she saw someone walking by and she pulled Johanna back. When the cost was clear she urged her on onto Regina's office.

It was just as it had been when Snow and the others had first found out that Cora held the scroll hostage. No one was in the office and the princess counted that as a blessing as she moved to the far wall. "I'm not sure exactly where it is," she murmured.

"The entrance to the vault?" Johanna asked. "I saw her open it just yesterday. It has something to do with that mirror there."

"Perfect." Snow ran her fingers along the mirror until she found what she was looking for. The latch clicked and it swung open, revealing a tunnel that didn't look like it should lead to the space under the vault in the graveyard, but somehow it did. She ventured a guess that there was magic at play there.

The two women moved in quietly, finding their path open. There was a lot that Snow White could call a fair amount of it luck, but by the time they reached the vault with all the hearts she had started to suspect something else entirely.

"Johanna, there's another entrance that way. Could you go check it? I want to make sure we're really alone."

"There's no point," Johanna answered softly.

"What do you mean?"

"She means that I'm already here," Cora chirped, appearing in a swirl of magic. Zelena appeared blocking the exit they'd entered through. "Really, dear, do you never learn?"

"Snow, I'm so sorry," Johanna said desperately.

Snow smiled at her. "Whatever happens, Johanna, know that this is _not_ your fault."

"You're right, Snow," Cora said, her tone sounding as if she were speaking to a child. "It's yours."

The princess didn't have time to respond as the Queen of Hearts did what she did best. She gasped as the elder woman appeared directly in front of her and slammed her hand through her chest, tearing her heart out and holding it up as if it were a trophy.

"I will _never_ do what you ask," Snow vowed.

"You really have no choice. You'll find your weapon of choice on that table over there."

Dread started to rise in her. "Why would you just hand me my weapon?"

"Because you're going to put an end to Johanna here," Cora answered cheerfully.

Even as her lips parted to deny it, Snow felt her body move forward against her commands. Her fingers trembled from the effort to stop it and tears stood in her eyes as she took up the bow and an arrow. She turned, feeling them spill over to her cheeks. "Johanna, I-"

Her old friend smiled, mirroring the same tortured expression. "It's not your fault," she promised.

"How sweet," Cora growled and waved a hand. "How untrue. You _will_ kill her, Snow White."

The command slammed into Snow and the bow string slipped from her grasp.

* * *

TBC

Notes:

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Eight: At All Costs, in which the final battle begins.


	39. At All Costs

**Chapter Thirty-Eight: At All Costs**

Twenty-eight years and Emma would return. Then the final battle would begin. That was what Rumplestiltskin had told them would happen from his little cell deep in the mines as he sank deeper and deeper into his own madness. Emma would return, Emma would believe, and war would be upon them. As Snow sat in the corner of the room she'd been left in, she felt as if they might have lost it before it had even begun.

Cora had left her there to stew. There was really no other reason. She had left her alone with her thoughts and the pain of what she'd done. Words swirled around in Snow's mind and as she looked down at her hands in her lap she was still surprised when they weren't coated in blood. They should have been. She'd murdered a dear friend. She'd notched the arrow and let it fly. They had been her hands, her muscles, and the fact that she'd tried with everything she had to fight against it didn't seem to matter anymore. It just felt like a lie that she was telling herself to ease the pain.

Snow had always thought that being without her heart meant she wouldn't feel, but a new wave of anguish washed over her as she met the lifeless gaze of a woman that had all but raised her. It was her fault. All her fault. Anything else was a lie.

"If only your mother could see you now," Cora purred as she appeared in the shadows. If she'd been there the whole time, Snow couldn't have said. The Queen of Hearts walked around, her head held high and her her heels clicking on the hard floor. She looked utterly victorious. "My, what would she say? Her little Snow White gone and become a murderer. And she only ever wanted you to be good."

"You killed her," Snow whispered brokenly.

"Eva? Yes. Yes I did, but dear, innocent Johanna? That was you, Snow. Your hands pulling back the string on your bow and loosing your arrow into her chest. Tell me, how does it feel?"

Tears slipped down her cheeks and they weren't the first. Snow looked up at her captor. "If you're going to kill me, then kill me, just like you did my mother."

"Why would I do that, dear? To ease your pain? To end your suffering?" A terrible, wicked smile pulled at her painted lips. "No, I don't think so. I don't think you're quite done. Perhaps your dear Charming should be next? Or your daughter or her infernal boy? Or perhaps... Yes, I do think I know just the person. Two birds with one stone, isn't that what they say?"

"You're a monster," Snow growled, pulling away from her. She couldn't stop it. If Cora demanded that she kill her husband, her daughter, or her family, she'd be forced to do it. She'd never realized exactly how total the control really was. Did Graham feel like this, even under the curse when Regina used his heart to do her bidding? What about all of those poor people in the Enchanted Forest that Cora had sent after she, Emma, Aurora, and Mulan? They'd been under her control just the same, but the three women had cut them down and fought for their lives. Now the others would do the same. If it came down to it, no matter how much it would hurt him, Snow hoped that her husband would end this miserable existence rather than let her cut short his life.

"That's a bit rude, don't you think?" She pulled away from Cora as the elder woman leaned forward. "Let me tell you something, dear, and this may be a bit hard for you to take, but I bet you know the truth when you hear it, don't you?"

Cora was speaking as if to a child and it made Snow's skin crawl. She was backed up to the wall now with nowhere to go. She pressed against the barrier as if she thought she might be able to will herself through it, but she didn't have magic. She wasn't a sorceress. This woman was though, and she had made it very, very clear just how powerless Snow really was.

"Your mother was not as pure as she would have liked you to believe. She was a jealous little thing, willing to tell any secret and fashion any lie to get what she wanted. She revelled in destroying my chances at a happy life, and because of that I was forced to give up my first born daughter."

"My mother was a _good_ woman," Snow argued. "You're lying."

"Think what you will, dear, but I have confidence you'll understand the truth before the end. Now get up. There's work to be done."

* * *

Henry had never made friends very easily. That tended to happen when a boy grew up in a cursed town where no one aged but him. Even if his mother had not kept him pretty tightly under wraps - which made so much more sense now that he knew she had been trying to hide the truth so plainly in front of him all those years! - he was an oddity that was never quite understood. No one could place their finger on it, of course, but since he aged and the others didn't, they'd always shied away from him, put a bit of a damper on forming any sort of meaningful friendships. So the fact that Wendy seemed genuinely happy to spend time with him was more than really knew what to do with. She didn't even argue his idea and the fact that she went as far as to support it made it all the more exciting.

"Well, we can't just sit around and wait for something terrible to happen," the blonde said sensibly as she pulled her thick hair back into a braid. "We may not be adults, but we've survived Neverland. I think that makes us a bit more than average children."

"Definitely," Henry agreed, flipping through his book one more time for anything else about the scroll or the curse that he may have missed. "She won't expect it anyway. I know every secret way into the Town Hall that exists. Trust me, I'm an expert at sneaking in and out. She won't see us coming."

"Certainly not, though I fear we may need to give my brothers the slip as well. They've seemed to have forgotten who the elder sibling is in our family." Wendy bristled a bit at the idea and Henry knew how she felt.

"I think we can manage. Grandpa Gold is going with them, so he won't be here to watch the wards really carefully. Are your brothers the only ones they're leaving? I thought Tink and Granny were supposed to be here too?"

Wendy frowned. "Granny is the one with the excellent hearing, isn't she?"

"Yeah. And I think Grandpa settled for Tink when it was her or Blue that would stay to watch us."

"He doesn't like Blue? Who is she?"

"A crabby fairy who thinks lying is totally okay if it's for the _greater good_," Henry answered, his voice pitching up sarcastically at the end and causing his friend to giggle.

"You remind me a lot of Bae when he was young."

"Really? I think I kind of look like him."

"You look very much like him."

Henry inched towards the window. They were three stories up with people all around the house. There would be no sneaking out the front door. There was only the balcony or the window. Three stories up was quite a jump, and they really had no idea if their plan of escape would work. "Why are you risking yourself for this?" he asked, turning to look directly at Wendy.

The elder girl seemed a bit startled by the question at first, but then her expression softened a her lips quirked into a small smile. "Baelfire saved my brothers' lives when we were all young and Emma found them here. You saved my life in Neverland. I owe your family more than I could ever repay, but I'm determined to try."

Henry nodded. "We don't know this will work," he warned, fishing the all vial of dust out of his pocket. It was the last that he'd taken with him. He'd hoped to save it longer than this, but desperate times called for desperate measures, of course.

"Sure we do," Wendy answered as she grabbed his hand and led him over towards the balcony doors. She pushed them open and turned, her brown eyes full of hope. "I don't think the Heart of the Truest believer is limited to Neverland, Henry. I believe in you. I believe we can do this. Do you?"

Henry grinned at that. "Yeah." The pixie dust began to glow in its container as he popped the lid. It was the very last, but it would be enough. He knew it was. He'd wanted to fly again since coming back from Neverland, and as he tossed the dust into the air and he and Wendy jumped, hand in hand, it carried them safely to the ground below. The rest would be up to them.

* * *

Belle was starting to see why Rumple had asked her to go with David and Ruby now. At first she'd protested, saying that she could help him in whatever he needed to do, but he had told her that her skills would be better used with them. She hadn't understood what he meant at the time, but now that they'd worked their way into the town hall - a small charm that Rumple had provided to each of them allowing access - she was starting to understand. David was a fair man in general, but he was determined not to let anything get in his way of finding Mary Margaret, even if it meant marching right into a trap. Belle hadn't realized that Ruby and August had been close, much less close enough to send the werewolf after revenge. She didn't call it that, of course, but Belle saw it in her eyes. She'd been hurt by the former puppet's death, and when that pain was coupled with the fact that her best friend had been taken from her, she was as ready to put an end to this threat as David was. Together they would have gotten themselves killed without the librarian's unique ability to calm situations.

No one knew exactly how many people had been taken from Storybrooke, so while this rescue mission was dangerous, it was necessary. They had already lost people, they weren't going to add Snow to that list.

The halls were deceptively quiet, and though Belle did not claim a great deal of hands-on knowledge when it came to battle, she had enough common sense to know an ambush when she saw one. It looked like David and Ruby saw it too with the way they readied themselves for whatever might come.

Ruby tilted her head, sniffing the air. "They're close."

"How many?" David asked, adjusting his grip on his sword.

"Half a dozen or so."

"Well, there's three of us," Belle offered. "That shouldn't be too bad, right?"

David frowned. "Belle, you're not really…."

The blue eyed woman quirked an eyebrow. "Not really what?"

"Trained for this sort of thing?"

"I've fought battles before. I'm not afraid."

"It's not about being afraid," Ruby said. "It's about getting out of this alive. Did Gold give you anything to protect you?"

Belle blinked owlishly. It had all come together so fast, she hadn't even thought to ask, and Rumple's attentions had been pulled in every direction just before they departed. He had slipped the charmed necklace that had allowed her to pass through the wards into place and kissed her as they split ways, telling her he loved her. There had been nothing about protection or something to fight with. She'd thought she'd be useful with her wits, as she always made use of them. Nothing had changed. "I can't always rely on Rumple to protect me. I'm not a cowering child like Cora seems to think."

That pulled a smile from Ruby. It was strained, but it was real. "Right. Sorry."

The quiet ended in a burst of noise. They might have been controlled by Cora, but it was as if she'd given them the notion of _go_ and then they went in a stampede of murderous rampage. The faces were ones they recognized - King Midas, Prince Thomas, Abigail and Frederick, and Doc - and several that they didn't.

"Half a dozen?" David managed.

Ruby swallowed hard. "Maybe more?"

The blond prince gripped his sword, looking very unhappy with the crowd they were pit against. "These are our friends. How are we supposed to fight them?"

Belle looked down the hall, gaining her bearings. She didn't spend a great deal of time in the building, but she had a better idea of the layout on this side than the mayor's. As the plan started to form, she grabbed each of her friends by the sleeve. "I have a plan."

"And that is?" David asked, somehow managing to sound less demanding than the situation might have lent to.

"If we can get to the sheriff's side, I'll show you."

There wasn't time to argue, and thankfully they both knew Belle well enough to follow. None of them wanted to fight their friends, and that's what Cora was betting on. She'd have her heartless army strike down Storybrooke's heroes for her and she'd rule whatever was left behind through fear and utter intimidation. It would be a living nightmare for all that remained. While this may have started as a rescue mission for Snow with the hopes of recovering the scroll on the side, now it was clear just what all was at stake. The entire town, everyone they loved, and more was teetering on the edge now, and if they lost today, they wouldn't only lose their lives, but would doom everyone left behind to a more miserable existence than Regina could have ever dreamt up for them. Now was the moment to have courage and to hold steady to it at all costs.

* * *

The fact that she thought he was insane really didn't matter. Regina wasn't sure he'd ever even been sane in the all years that she'd known him. Perhaps that was part of his curse or perhaps the years of obsessively trying to fix the one wrong that had haunted him had taken a larger toll on him than even he realized, but she was quite certain that Rumplestiltskin was insane. Not that she had a saner idea of how to attack her mother.

None of this would have happened if Snow had just listened to her, she decided as she slipped through a soft spot on her mother's hijacked wards. Cora knew they were coming, of that she had no question. The woman was clever and vindictive if nothing else. Regina couldn't be sure what she'd done to Snow while she held her, but the younger woman was most certainly the bait. The bait that had brought them all running. Rumplestiltskin's plan was most certainly insane.

"Hello, Regina."

The Evil Queen stopped, the voice behind her not startling her, per se, but she hadn't been expecting it either. She turned to see Snow White standing in the doorway she'd just passed through, a bow held loosely in one hand and a quiver of arrows strapped onto her back. There was something off about her entire demeanor, and if Regina hadn't taken her fair share of hearts in her lifetime she might never have known what it was. "She has it."

"Yes."

Regina barked out a laugh. "Did Mother send _you_ to kill me then?"

"I don't think that she suspects I'd win that fight," Snow said sadly.

"Of course she doesn't," the elder woman growled. "She wants it to look like I've betrayed everyone. She wants me to kill you and have them all think I enjoyed it."

"Regina, I'm so sorry, but please… I don't want to hurt anyone else."

Dark eyes watched her reach slowly back for an arrow, almost as if she were fighting the movement with everything she had and it still wasn't enough. "What do you mean anyone else? Who else have you hurt?" she demanded, mind flashing to any number of their allies that could be lying dead in the hallways. They'd split up upon entering, trying to cover more ground. They had no way to really know how many minions Cora had at her disposal, so sneaking past was preferable. That, and these heroes were so afraid of killing so-called innocents that it made Regina's stomach turn a little.

"Johanna. She made me… Regina, _please_. Please just kill me."

So Cora had used the princess' heart to make her kill. There had been many cruel fates that Regina had wished to inflict on her one-time step-daughter, but even she thought that might be going a little far. Or maybe that just showed how far she had come, but there was no time to focus on that now.

"Regina!" Snow cried and the arrow slipped from its place.

It didn't take much, just a flicker of her hand and magic knocked it off its course. It buried itself in the wall and dark eyes fixated on green as she notched another arrow. Magic shimmered and Snow couldn't have let go of the arrow if she'd been commanded to. Cora was counting on Regina's own dark impulses to finish this. Her enemy was there, helpless, and begging for death. That darkness in Regina's heart burned to do away with her and finish their blood feud once and for all, but there was a light that pushed it back. It was small and whispering, but it spoke in a voice she couldn't deny. It spoke in Henry's voice. "I'm not going to kill you, Snow," the former Evil Queen answered, and when the younger woman spoke again, she was fairly certain it wasn't of her own choosing.

"But I'm the reason Daniel died. If it weren't for me, you could have run away with him, loved him, and have been free. I told Cora your secret, even when you told me not to. When I promised I wouldn't."

"It's true, you did betray my trust. You did get Daniel killed," Regina said as she stepped closer and despite everything, she saw a little fear in Snow's eyes. She leaned in, making sure both the woman she was speaking to and the one that held her heart heard her clearly. "But Henry loves you."

"He'd never know it was your choice," Cora said with Snow's mouth.

"I didn't tell him I'd pretend to be better, I told him I'd _be_ better."

"Isn't that touching?" a voice chirped from behind and Regina spun.

She'd never met the blue-eyed woman that stood with a wide, fake smile plastered across her face, but she thought she might know who she was. "Zelena."

"Right in one, sis. I told Mother she shouldn't give you another chance. You'd just squander it away, and for what? A boy that won't live past the day?"

"You're not going anywhere near my son," Regina vowed and flames leapt to her open hand.

"I always wanted to go a round with you," Zelena said as she pulled on her own magic, "just to show you how much better I am. I'm going to kill you today, little sister, and then I'm going to take the Dark One's dagger and Mother will have him kill your precious Henry. You've lost."

"You'll have to kill me to get to Henry."

"Gladly."

* * *

He was half surprised that his papa hadn't argued to keep him at the house after what happened the last time he and Emma had gone to the town hall to face off with Cora. Thankfully Rumplestiltskin had settled for a brief overview of various bits of offensive and defensive magics he'd taught Bae so far. There'd been something odd in his entire behavior, though, and his son was still trying to push it from his mind.

"You with me?" Emma asked. "This is kind of important, you know. Crazy lady trying to kill everyone in Storybrooke. Has my mom."

"I know. I'm here."

"Could have fooled me."

"I'm just going over what Pop's been teaching me the last couple days."

"Which is?"

An escape route, he knew, but somehow to say it out loud made him feel like a coward. It was a feeling that reached back as far as his childhood when expectations were that he'd march into battle at fourteen-years-old and his father was supposed to stand back and let him. He was suppose to encourage it, but instead, he'd found a backdoor out. Rather he'd forced one into existence, but he'd found one nevertheless. Their lessons had been brief compared to what they should have been, and Bae wasn't overly comfortable with his grasp of the subject matter, but if it came down to it, he'd protect the woman he loved with everything he had.

"Just a spell," he answered. "Don't worry about it."

"Well, I wish you had a spell to tell us where to look," Emma groused.

"I'd hoped you wouldn't be twice the fool, Baelfire."

Bae stiffened and he saw Emma do the same. He knew the voice and he knew who he would see as soon as he turned. "Killian."

"I'm so sorry, lad. If you've ever believed anything I've told you, believe me when I say I'd much rather be on your side than hers."

"She really does have your heart then."

"She really does." Hook had his sword drawn, eyeing them both carefully. He looked like a man not in control over his own actions.

"Go."

Emma whirled on him. "You're joking right?"

"No sense in both of us getting caught in this." Bae hoped that she caught the look. They'd fallen into a pattern when they were young and so often finding trouble. It had been one where they hardly needed words. Small cues and glances did the hard work for them when they needed to find a way around the police or persistent security guard, but he wasn't sure she would be looking for it here. It was an old trick, but one that could catch a pirate already unhappy with fighting them off his guard. He didn't want to kill Killian, not really, and he needed to make sure he was out of play. The last thing he needed was for Hook to stumble across his papa and stop him or Regina from getting to the scroll. He glanced over to Emma one more time and he thought he saw it click finally as he said, "Go."

"Be careful."

"Always."

That was the cue. She understood and she was off, leaving Baelfire to face the man that had both betrayed him and helped him over different points in his life. Now wasn't the time to take a tally and see where they stood in the grand scheme of things. Now he just had to make sure that they both got out of there alive.

Hook let Emma go, glance following her as she rounded a corner. "Cora wants to kill her herself. Something about being the granddaughter of some queen or something of the sort."

"She's not going to lay a hand on Emma."

The pirate didn't bother to argue it. He'd stalled as long as he could and he took a swing at his former lover's son. Bae's magic leapt to his call and it shielded him from the blade, pushing Hook back as it did. After the initial shove Killian pushed back, the blade glowing slightly. Cora must have enchanted the damn thing. Bae growled in frustration as he threw himself to the side when his shields failed.

He'd proven to be much better at defensive magic than offensive, but he tried to recall the spells his papa had taught him as he rolled to his feet. If he could manage to throw enough at Hook, he couldn't deflect everything. He just had to distract him. Emma would, hopefully, do the rest.

_Magic is emotion. _

His papa's voice rang soundly in his own mind. He was thinking too much on the individual spells and they weren't coming quickly enough to him. He wanted to protect Emma and Henry and his father. He wanted to reclaim the family he'd lost. The magic leapt from his fingers, slipping past Hook's sword and catching him square in the chest. It sent the pirate tumbling and it took him a moment to shake off. It gave Bae time to reset his feet, though, and he threw another spell.

The pirate parried again, grimacing as he did, but Bae knew he had to fight this fight until he was taken down. Hook's sword caught a spell and knocked it back, clipping the caster painfully and sending him tumbling to the floor. He hit hard and found a blade thrust in his face. Hook's features were twisted into something like regret. "I'm sorry, lad. Really I am."

* * *

TBC

Notes: I didn't get a chance to get back to many people this week on reviews (it's been an absolutely insane sort of week) but I wanted to thank you for the reviews! And to the guest who I can't PM, have faith! It's not over until it's over :)

Next time - Chapter Thirty-Nine: Until the Bitter End, in which our heroes fight for their lives and Rumplestiltskin faces off against a woman he once loved.


	40. Until the Bitter End

**Chapter Thirty-Nine: Until the Bitter End**

Heart or no heart, there was something satisfying about a victory that reached through to Cora's very being. There really was little better than the feeling that came with utterly crushing her enemies. Watching them as it was happening might be the only thing that came close.

The Queen of Hearts couldn't stop her thin lips from twisting into a smile as she waved her hand over her daughter's mirror, pulling images from it. In all parts of the town hall the little heroes were fleeing for their lives. Snow's dear husband and friend - paired with Rumple's little flower - were just steps away from being torn apart by her army and dear Baelfire was fighting a losing battle with her pet pirate. An elated sort of giggle bubbled up as she switched over to watch her daughters for the briefest of moments, magic ripping everything apart around them, and Snow White stood frozen and helplessly watching.

These little pests would tear themselves apart in their hopes of setting things right. They'd meant to rescue one of their own and would meet their destruction instead. Cora waved a dismissive hand across the mirror to banish the images. They mattered little in the whole of it all. The main player was yet to arrive, though she had no doubt that he would. Rumplestiltskin had already proven the lengths he would go to for his son, and with both the boy and the pretty little thing's heads on the chopping block the Dark One would be willing to make one hell of deal.

Or he'd try to kill her. Cora supposed that was a possibility. Rumple always had had a temper, though she knew he wouldn't have the power to unleash it in full just yet. She'd planned her attack on him well and it could potentially leave him with lingering effects for years to come in this world. The Land Without Magic did tie him down terribly. It was a wonder that he'd worked so hard to get here, and she had to question if he'd known just what it would do to him. He'd done it all for the boy, and it would be that love - that _weakness_ - that she would use against him to put him more permanently on his knees before her. Supposed True Love or not, he'd likely choose his child over Belle, but Cora was quite sure that his suffering would be immense with either of their deaths. She might even have him kill the remaining one once she had the Kris Dagger in her hands.

If he bent immediately or if he were fool enough to try to kill her, it really didn't matter. Rumplestiltskin _would_ come to her, and when he did she would be ready. She would crush him again and again until he learned the extent of his mistake. She'd offered him her heart, and he had turned her away, and for what? Those little flickers of light in his ocean of darkness? Now she would strip those from him. She would destroy them and crush that light from his soul, leaving only the darkness in its wake. Then, perhaps, he might remember who he really was. The Dark One had been the man she'd loved so deeply all those years ago, after all, and even if it took some work, she could find a way to bring back that all-encompassing darkness once again.

* * *

Emma could have killed him, but the point of splitting up and running a very old - and tweaked version - route that they'd used to duck cops and security guards more times than either would ever admit to their son was to make sure the idiot lived through it. When they'd run this on law enforcement there was really never any fear of injury, but it was meant as a distraction so that they could both slip away unharmed. Now the stakes were higher and as she moved as quietly up the old, creaky stairs as she could, she found herself hoping she could pull this off. She'd certainly never used a gun in their original distractions that had allowed them to get away, but there hadn't been a stab-happy pirate controlled by a crazy sorceress that wanted to destroy them all either. What Emma wouldn't give for just a little _normal_.

A board creaked under her boot and the savior winced. She could hear the scuffle in the open space below. She could circle around the hall that opened up just before the stairs where she'd once helped save Regina from Gold's explosion as long as she didn't draw attention to herself.

Emma finally reached a place where she could see. Hook's sword must have been enchanted in some way like Mulan's had been, because Neal shot off a spell and Hook deflected it. The magic slammed into her son's father and sent him back hard, landing on his backside, dazed, until the pirate lifted his sword. Dread pulled at Emma for a breath of a moment, but this was something she could handle. For once she didn't need anything other than what she had in her hands. She didn't need magic or any sort of potion she didn't understand. There was a man threatening the man she loved, and she'd be damned if she let him go again.

The shot rang out, echoing through the room and Hook went rigid below. Emma waited long enough to see the sword slip from his hand and she took off for the stairs, Neal's name tumbling from her lips. Her boots slammed against the steps as she skipped every third one or so, grabbing the post at the bottom to fling herself in the direction of what could have turned into a very dangerous battle.

Neal was making it slowly to his feet as the pirate sank to his knees. It was hard to tell how bad the damage was with all the leather the man wore, but she hadn't aimed to kill him, just to take him out of play. His face showed sure signs of pain and he couldn't even reach a hand to the wound as he fell the rest of the way to the floor, a grunt of pain escaping him.

"Killian..." Neal said hesitantly and as he moved Emma caught sight of where his deflected magic had ripped through his shirt, leaving the area material aroud the tear charred as if it had been burned. She could see blood from the wound, but couldn't tell how deep it was even as she moved closer.

"Don't," Hook said as he waved the younger man off. "Give that witch half a chance and she'll have my hook through your heart. I'd really rather not."

"I can't just leave you here," Neal argued and the pirate rolled his eyes.

"Swan's a good shot. I'll likely be right as rain soon enough." His hazy blue gaze shifted to her. "You really would make an excellent pirate."

"Wrong world and time for that," she answered tightly and the sound of approaching footsteps caused every muscle to tense.

"Time to go, lass. You'll take care of him, won't you?"

Emma's eyes narrowed and Killian offered her a crooked smile. "Ask him his mother's name some time. You've heard it before," he said by way of explanation and she turned to look at her lover.

Neal's expression was carefully blank, much like the one she'd seen Gold wear time and again. "We'll get your heart back, Killian."

"Got to escape to do that, lad."

"You good?" Emma asked, hand going to the wound and he brushed it away.

"Yeah. Let's go."

They'd barely started down the hall when the sound of footsteps started coming from that direction as well. It wouldn't be long before every exit was cut off and Emma checked her gun. She had no interest in killing their friends, but she had no interest in dying either. They had a son to watch after, and she would _not_ let Henry grow up like both of them had.

"You trust me?" Neal asked suddenly, catching her attention. He was standing right in front of her, dark eyes fixed on her own hazel ones.

"Yes?"

"You don't sound sure. I need you to be sure."

"Yes. What the hell are you about to-" She didn't have time to finish the question before he'd wrapped his arms around her and she felt the strangest sensation of the world being jerked out from under her feet, and if she didn't know better, she'd think that he'd teleported them.

* * *

The battle had forced them into the large meeting room of the town hall, sparks of dark purple and green snarling and biting at each other as the women that controlled them fought. Regina was no stranger to finding herself at the other end of people's hatred - she had been the Evil Queen, after all, and she'd earned that title well - but usually she'd done something to deserve it. Being born seemed a bit melodramatic, even for a woman that seemed to feel cheated in every part of her life.

She'd lost sight of Snow, but her spell should be holding her in place outside of the room. Regina would never hear the end of it if one of her stray curses killed the dark haired princess. For some reason Zelena thought the openness of the room would give her a better chance than the enclosed halls. She just didn't realize this was her younger sister's building. She'd created it, shaped it, and worked in it. She knew it well. Every little nook and cranny. It was her magic woven into the wood and to the tiles - hers and Rumple's - and that was what made it so easy to deflect the railing that that was flung her way.

Zelena let out a frustrated yowel that made Regina laugh. "Too much for you?"

"I'm just getting started," the elder sister promised and the floor beneath Regina's shoes began to shake as the only warning before the wood exploded upward, tossing her into the air and cutting into her skin. She landed hard, but it didn't drive the laughter from her.

Regina pulled herself to her feet. "If that's how we're going to play it," she chuckled, and her mirth seemed to only infuriate Zelena further. The older woman had talent, she'd give her that. The spells and curses they exchanged were becoming more and more complex. It was quickly becoming apparent that the Evil Queen wasn't going to defeat the Wicked Witch on raw power alone, but she'd been taught by Rumplestiltskin. She had an advantage that Zelena could never dream of, no matter how powerful. Rumple had chosen _her_.

Regina threw a curse out. It was one that the Dark One would have been proud of. She'd never been naturally talented with magic that wound in and around itself quite so tightly, but he'd forced her to learn it. If she hadn't, there would have been no way that she could have cast the curse for him that she did. This one would rip through her sister's defences and slam her to the ground, binding her to it upon impact. She'd added another layer to hold the witch's magic and buried that thread so deep she wasn't sure she'd even be able to find it to release it. All and all, Regina was quite pleased with herself.

Until Zelena caught the ball of power in one hand. Her lips quirked upward into a truly wicked smile as she tossed it back, hitting Regina in the guy and knocking the air out of her lungs. She slammed back down and the broken pieces of the floor reached up, shackling her into place and her magic was instantly snuffed, making her feel as if she might suffocate.

"There," Zelena said cheerfully. "That's better. Now you just lie there quietly-"

"If you think you're going to-" A gag snapped into place, tightening every time Regina struggled against it until she stopped, settling for a glare.

"Good girl," Zelena said as if complimenting the behaviour of a wayward pet and she stepped over her, head tilted to the side, her lips quirking downward at the edges. "Look at you. You don't even know what you've done to deserve this, do you? You just don't get it, but you will. And then I'll end you."

* * *

Henry knew almost every in and out to the Town Hall. He'd grown up with his mother as the mayor, after all, and Cora was new to town. That's what he told himself as they slipped in.

"Shouldn't there be magic keeping us out?" Wendy whispered.

"Maybe she's not as good as she thinks she is," Henry offered, but he could tell his companion didn't buy it any more than he did. They were inside, though, whatever the cause, and Henry had found the entrance he'd used as a little kid to sneak up on his mom's secretary and play pranks. It was a path through the walls that he'd hadn't thought anything of until he realized he lived in a cursed town. Now - no matter what his mother had once used them for - they could be used to make it to the vault. It was the safest place to hide the scroll and Cora wouldn't think anyone could slip down there without her knowing. Henry was clever though.

"Come on," he whispered, urging her along. She was the one so determined to help him.

They continued down the hidden corridor that would lead to Regina's office. "Just a little further," he promised and stopped just where the bit of light peeked through. Voices could be heard from the other side.

"She's in the office," Wendy whispered as she tried to get a good look around Henry. "Now what?"

"I don't know," the boy admitted softly. This was the end of the secret hall. If they couldn't get in this way, likely they didn't have a chance at all. He pressed his ear against the small crack, listening.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to see who the second voice belongs to."

"Can you hear?"

Henry strained and focused. Finally, the second speaker inched just close enough that he recognized the lilt. "Grandpa Gold."

* * *

It was like Cora was waiting on him, and perhaps she was. She had all of her little pawns out to do her bidding and had greeted him as if she were a queen in her castle. Rumplestiltskin knew better, though. She could cover up the signs of a poor childhood with elegant dresses, the insecurities that accompanied her upbringing with powerful magic that could take down equally powerful foes, but her former teacher and lover knew better than all that. She would always reach back to those helpless days to fuel her hate, and in doing so she would never leave it behind. The mill, her father, and her crushed hopes and dreams would always follow her because Cora had nothing left to cling to. She had driven away the one person in the worlds that might be willing to love her - _really_ love her, not the pathetic grovelling that was Zelena's reaction - and was left with only a shadow in replace of hope. Rumplestiltskin understood that emptiness well. If he ever lost his family he might sink into its depths quickly enough. If he lost Bae and Belle again there would be nothing left but the frightened spinner that had always known he was little better than the dust on other men's boots, and when he'd forgotten that, they had reminded him. He could pretend to be strong for those he loved now, just as Cora could pretend to be strong so that she could pretend she loved herself. In the end, they stood there in a little town that should never have existed and faced off: two nothings that had made themselves into something and wore their masks with pride.

"Rumple," she greeted with that smile that hid everything. "So nice of you to join. I'd hoped I hadn't been too rough on you in our last encounter."

"Don't bother with all that. We both know that you've no interest in my health."

Her smile didn't falter as she stepped closer and the Dark One steeled himself not to move. He hadn't quite managed to get out of the house without his cane to lean on, so he gripped it now to hold himself steady. Cora leaned in, her breath hot on his face and her dark eyes met his. "You chose the wrong side, Rumple. One by one your new little allies are being picked off. I sent a broken Snow White as a type of offering to my younger daughter, though she was foolish enough not to accept it. Zelena will finish her off. Hook has his orders on dear Baelfire. Tell me, Rumple, how does it feel to know the man that stole your wife away so long ago will gut your precious boy?" She was watching him carefully and seemed satisfied with the steely expression she received in return. "And that little flower if yours. Belle, wasn't it? I think I'll kill her myself. What do you say, Rumple? Care to watch as I crush her heart as you taught me to do?"

Her hand stopped over his own chest and he smirked at her. She was thinking about it, he could see it in her eyes. She wasn't as unpredictable as she would have liked to have been. "You know that's pointless, dearie. You couldn't take _my_ heart if you tried."

"That doesn't mean I can't crush it in a different way. Really, Rumple, what would you have left after your son and the girl are dead?"

"I won't let you near either one of them."

"Really? You're powerful, but even you can't be at multiple places at once. This comes to an end today, but I'll make you a deal, Rumplestiltskin. You hand over that pretty little dagger of yours and I'll let one of them live. You can even choose if you're a good little pet. What do you say?"

Her attention was on him, her fingers playing with the collar of his shirt and down to the lapel of his jacket. He didn't pull away and her hands lingered, just as they always would if he gave her half the chance. Distractions did wonders, but he wasn't quite there yet. Close, though, and even if Regina couldn't get her hands on the scroll, perhaps he could. What would happen then was still a blank slate in his mind.

Rumplestiltskin watched the woman he'd once thought that he'd loved, and risked a glance into the future. It was changing, evolving, and fluctuating with each turn of events. His family and those that he'd come to (reluctantly) call his allies were fighting, and given the right circumstances the _would_ win. He'd known that since they'd set out. It had been his own place and his own path that had been so shadowy. He looked down the different strands now, puzzle pieces snapping together and flying apart at rapid speed until they fit together, scenarios dancing across his mind's eye. He could take it, that wasn't even a question. He could snatch it away from her and protect them, but then what? She would come for them each and every time. He could kill her, he thought. He'd even _like_ to kill her at this point, though those puzzle pieces were scattered. He wasn't at his usual strength yet. She'd really planned this part out well, much to his irritation.

The only sure way to kill her would be to destroy everything. He'd written the curse and if anyone could manipulate it so that his grandson wouldn't be left behind, it was Rumplestiltskin. He wouldn't know the price involved in that until he touched the scroll itself.

"Well, Rumple?"

His eyes flashed dangerously and the smile that perked his lips was a vivacious one. "I'd always thought you'd be a woman of action, Cora. You certainly had it in you."

"What are you going on about?" she demanded and he could feel the spark of magic fueled by her temper. "If you want them both dead, I'm sure I can oblige, _dear_," she hissed.

The price hit him as soon as the scroll touched his fingers. It rocked the world beneath his feet, but somehow he remained steady against it, that clever smile of his stretching thin lips and he took a step forward into her space. It was Cora that stepped back now, unsure of the change and he loosed a low, cruel chuckle. "Should have been a woman of action, dearie. If not, people just won't take you seriously."

Her eyes grew wide as he held up the scroll, but there was no taking it from him now. He was the author and creator of the Curse to End All Curses. Bits of possible futures flashed before him. They were pieces of what would happen if he didn't follow through, no matter the price he'd have to pay personally. Bae would die and Belle, along with Henry and the all of those people that were somehow now his family through his grandson. She would kill them all, and eventually, she would find a way to claim his dagger while he wallowed in his grief. There was no other way. He had to see this through to the bitter end.

"You should have destroyed it when you had the chance, dearie, because now, you'll go down with it," he growled and the paper tore between his fingers, a shockwave of magic ripping through the room and out into the town.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I was fighting a headache while editing this chapter down, so if you see any typos please let me know!

So, I won't say too much about last night's episode in case some of you haven't watched it, but the 'Emma button' cracked me up. I'm still laughing about that one, though after that episode I ship SwanFire all the more. Seriously, Bae is more helpful in death than Hook is while he's tottering around Storybrooke. Next week looks exciting though. Lots and lots of Rumple playing everyone around him. I do love him when he does that. Clever and manipulative Rumple is my very favourite.

Next time - Chapter Forty: Shattered, in which Rumplestiltskin shatters his curse and everyone feels the repercussions throughout Storybrooke.


	41. Shattered

**Chapter Forty: Shattered **

Power surged and Rumplestiltskin could feel it through to his very core. His power. His magic. His curse that he had written. He'd poured more years of his considerably long life into than not, and with that he'd poured so much of himself in as well. His hopes and fears and desperations had blended together, creating and molding his path to find his son. He'd done it, and now it was time for it all to end. Fitting, somehow, that it was between his skilled fingers that the paper ripped.

"What have you done?" Cora whispered and Rumplestiltskin felt his lips quirk up a little at the corners.

What indeed. Perhaps he really had changed after everything. He'd gone looking for his boy and his boy had come looking for him, hoping to change fate, and in trying to do so, he may not have changed it completely, but he certainly had changed something deep in the Dark One's scarred soul. _He taught you the courage of the stars, _Belle's voice seemed to whisper and the smile grew. He had. His boy had taught him courage and his True Love had leant him strength. With that, he could accomplish anything.

"I did what needed to be done," he answered her, even as magic was gathering and ripping at the world in which they were living. It would build on itself and eventually Storybrooke would cease to be. He'd made sure that its inhabitants would be returned to their home, though. All of them, including his grandson who should have, by all rights, have been born there as his mother was. He wouldn't let his search for his son deprive Bae of his. Not this time.

"You _bastard_!" Cora howled, not bothering with magic as she slammed her fists into his chest. He was drawing power from the broken and shattered curse though and it hardly felt as if they connected. She pounded away, screaming at him in a brief moment of pent up frustration before she caught his calm look. "The price would be extraordinary," she whispered so that even he could barely hear her. "You'll die."

"And my family will live. I've made peace with that."

She stepped back, almost as if she'd been struck. Her eyes were wide as she continued to stare in horror. "I don't know you."

"Sure you do, dearie," he chuckled cruely. "I get what I want, and I've always wanted my family's safety. You'll die and they will be _safe_. It'll take time, but they'll have their happy ending."

He saw that flicker in her eye that always came before she thought she was being clever. "Not all of them. Oh Rumple, you silly, single-sighted man."

Rumplestiltskin felt his breath catch as magic swirled and a door in the wall popped open, revealing two children huddled there as if they'd been listening to everything. Henry was pulled to them by invisible strings of magic and Cora grinned terribly. "I may die, Rumple, but at least I'll take your precious grandson with me. Surely you know that there are no such things as happy endings."

She was counting on the fact that his injured body was not healed enough to fight her head-on and win, but as the creator of the soon-to-be-reversed-curse he was able to pull back at least some of the immense power he'd put into it during its writing. It all happened in an instant. Henry's eyes widened, Cora smiled, and Rumplestiltskin became a desperate man once more.

* * *

The plan was simple enough. At least, it had _seemed_ simple enough in theory, but now that there were rabid, heartless former-friends chasing her down, Belle wasn't so sure. It had all been explained as they ran, trying to keep the voices down because they weren't sure if their pursuers were cognisant on a level that would allow them to do much more than chase, maim, and kill for their queen, and even though it had been her plan, now she wasn't sure she was making the right turn.

And there it was. She should have had more faith in her memory. The librarian picked up speed, ready to hit the door at the end of the hall with all she had, fling it open and let them follow her through. Ruby would be waiting on the other side to shut it after she exited, David on this end to close it, and they'd hold them there. It was an absurdly simple plan, but they were getting desperate. They could figure out what to do with them until they got their hearts back from Cora later. For now, they just had to survive.

Belle hit the door hard and it didn't budge. A shuddering gasp escaped her and she rattled it with all her strength. "No!" she cried and kept shaking it as if it might encourage it to open. She turned, back pressed against the blocked entrance, and her escape path had been cut off. David would be on the other side of the mob, unable to help her, and Ruby was even further away. She could call for Rumple, she knew, and he would come in an instant. He would save her from an evil or danger that tried to harm her, but in doing so she could endanger the entire reason they'd come. He and Regina were the only ones that could snatch the scroll away from Cora now, and if he was close and she called him they might never get it. She couldn't risk it, no matter how desperate she might be. Some things were bigger than one life. She knew that, and she steeled herself with the hope that he could find it in himself to forgive her someday.

They were closing in now. The fact that they didn't have weapons didn't really seem to matter. There were enough of them that they could find any number of ways to kill her, and Belle was well aware that Cora wanted her dead. She pressed herself against the door as hands grabbed for her.

There was a sudden _whoosh_ of power and the crowd of heartless soldiers were knocked back. There was something familiar about the magic and Belle's hand went immediately to the necklace that had allowed her to enter. It had been just a little different from the charms Rumple had provided the others with and now she knew why.

Another hand made a grab and a second wave of power shot out, stealing consciousness from her attackers and when they dropped her blue eyes met another shade that belonged to a prince that looked both grateful and startled that he didn't have to use his sword on his friends. He sheathed it. "Guess you didn't need rescuing after all," he chuckled and Belle smiled, clutching the charm at her neck.

Before she could say anything a shudder ran through the floor, but something told her it was deeper than that. Much deeper.

"What was that?" David demanded and Belle pulled in a deep breath.

"I don't know," she whispered and tried to push aside the sudden and immediate need to find her love.

* * *

Bae didn't move for several long moments. He wasn't sure he could risk it. Nothing felt broken or left behind on his own body, but what if he'd hurt Emma? He clung to her, his nose buried in her blonde hair, and refused to let go. Finally she began to shift in his arms and loosed a breath against him. "Did you just teleport us?"

"I think so."

"Did you know that you could do that?"

"In theory?"

Emma jerked back and he only loosened his grip a little, never actually letting go. Dark eyes blinked at her as she glared. "Are you saying you could have left half of me behind or something?"

Baelfire covered the wince with what he hoped was an innocent smile. "I'd never do that," he managed, though even he wasn't convinced by the tone of his voice. She took a swing at him and he finally released her. "Ouch!"

The savior of Storybrooke pulled back instantly, guilt flashing across her face. "Sorry. I'm sorry. You okay?"

"You didn't hit me that hard," he grumbled, but then a sharp pain in his side reminded him that Killian had managed to deflect one solid blow back at him. He winced as he moved to inspect the injury, fingers finding burnt remains around the rip in his shirt and it was already starting to cling to his skin as the blood dried it there.

"Okay, magic guy," Emma groused as she swatted his fingers away from it, "you know any healing spells?"

"Not without Papa here to walk me through it," he admitted softly.

"You probably should have had him to walking you through teleportation, but hey, let's just jump rooms and see what happens."

Bae's lips twitched downward and suddenly he felt drained. He wasn't sure if it was the new magic or if maybe the wound was worse than it looked. There was plenty of blood, but not so much that he thought he should be swaying. He'd ask his father when this was all over and done with.

"Now what?" Emma asked quietly. "We're not a very good distraction while we're running away."

"I think the time for distraction's past. Cora knows we're here. If Regina or Pop one haven't gotten in to get the scroll, I don't think they'll get it. She'll guard that a hell of a lot closer than she will Mary Margaret."

"If we can just get out of here with her, I'll take it as a win. We'll come back for Cora."

"Yeah."

"You don't think we can?"

Bae tried for a smile, but even he knew it didn't reach his eyes. "I don't know," he said after a moment, honesty worked in through each word. Cora was powerful, and if they let her win here, even a partial win, they likely couldn't come back from it. Rumplestiltskin hadn't seemed to think they could and it was difficult to argue about the future with a man that could see it, no matter how optimistic you were trying to be.

A jolt ran through him very suddenly and everything flashed white. Bae felt his knees give and he and Emma both went crashing to the floor. At first he thought he'd simply taken her down with him, but when his vision finally cleared enough he saw that she was holding her head, the same pounding that was assaulting him making a go at her as well. It took a moment more for everything to stop swimming and to come to the certain conclusion that the floor was - at least mostly - steady under them.

"What the hell was that?" Emma demanded, trying to rise to her feet and making it as far as her knees.

Bae didn't even bother. "Magic. Really, really strong magic," he managed after a moment.

"You think Regina got ahold of the scroll?"

"Or Papa."

"So what happens if your dad breaks it? I mean, he didn't cast it, right? So would it destroy everything and kill everyone like it would with Cora? That'd be kind of pointless, right?"

"He wrote it, so I think he could probably find a way around it." A small smile made it to Baelfire's lips. "My dad's the king of loopholes."

"Does that make you the prince then?" the blonde snarked and he chuckled.

"So it's been said. Come on." He was nearly to his feet now and held a hand out for her.

She took it. "What are we supposed to do now?"

"Make sure the right person destroyed that scroll."

* * *

That damn imp had better have gotten his hands on the scroll. That was the only thought that was going to keep her sane as Zelena griped and complained. Oh, she thought she was explaining the many slights and wrongs, but really she sounded like a three year old declaring with grabby hands that everything was hers, hers, hers. It was insufferable.

Regina had never been the best at unraveling spells and picking spells apart as Rumple often did, but he _had_ taught her. She preferred brunt displays of power that sent people quaking to their knees before her, but she'd discovered quickly enough that that wouldn't get her anywhere with her elder sister. She had to be clever. It was her spell that Zelena had tossed back, after all, and while she'd buried that thread deep, she had to be able to find it.

She hated the process. The only good thing about the digging and the searching was that it helped to drown out the older woman's voice. The prattling continued while Regina searched, finding one wrong, then two. She had to be careful because she'd thought she was being awful clever when she had laid the traps she had. Now she was picking her way around them, careful not to disturb one that might very well leave her in a permanent state of paralysis.

There. She finally found it, risking a glance to her still rattling sister to make sure she was well distracted Regina tugged. She thought for a brief half moment that she'd found the wrong one and dread filled her, but all of a sudden it was like someone had removed a wet blanket from over her face. Fresh air pushed through her lungs, the fog cleared from her mind, and power gave strength to her limbs.

Zelena must have realized something had gone wrong because her head snapped and blue eyes met brown. Regina's restraints came under her control and she lashed out, the wood that had wrapped around her wrists and ankles acting like a whip. She lashed out as she stood, the flooring obeying her commands and Zelena gave a startled yelp as she tried to block the attack, slamming back against the far wall hard and she slumped, though didn't quite fall all the way. Her glare turned vicious.

"Did you really think this would be easy?" Regina demanded.

"Did _you_?"

The two powers slammed into each other again and if the room hadn't been damaged before it had now. Power swirled and danced, colours mixing in the air and leaving streaks of blood in their path. Regina thought after a few minutes - she assumed that they were minutes, with the kind of power that was flying between the two she'd hardly stopped to look at her watch - that they might actually bring the roof down on top of them. The magic built and built, and while much of it was directed in spells and curses that were well countered by the opposite sister, emotions were running high enough that it wasn't all directed specifically. Excess magic pushed and shoved for a place in the room, rolling dangerously along the ceiling until it formed a swirling cloud overhead that seemed to start fighting in on itself as much as the sisters were below.

"Give it up, Regina," Zelena snarled. "I'm obviously more powerful."

Regina snorted, catching a spell and was pleased with her own dismantling job. Of course Rumple wouldn't be there to see it, not that he'd congratulate her on it anyway. He'd probably have taken the moment to make some snide remark about how long it took her to figure it out. "Funny, but didn't Mother give _you_ away and didn't Rumplestiltskin choose _me_ to cast his curse? Must be some reason for that."

"Mother found me again and you were fool enough to throw her love away. I'll show Rumple he made the wrong decision."

"You do that."

The magic overhead bucked the ceiling and they both risked a glance upward and the danger that they'd created became apparent. It was going to bring everything down around them.

Then everything changed. Something more powerful than either of them screamed through the air, the electric shock of intense magic sapping the life out of their angry little cloud and sent both women to their knees. "What did you do?" Zelena demanded.

It hadn't been her, though, and Regina knew it. She'd only felt that level of power once before and that had been in the casting of the Dark Curse. It had washed over her that day, filling her with more power than she could have ever imagined possible. Now she knew it was over. In that moment the woman that had cast the Curse to End All Curses knew that her reign - as it was these days - was over and everything would really be coming down around them. The question was who had broken it: Rumple or her mother?

"What have you done?" Zelena howled again and lobbed a half formed spell at her younger sister.

"I didn't do it!" Regina growled back. "Someone shattered the curse. It's reversing."

"Mother," Zelena breathed.

Regina sincerely hoped not. If Cora had been the one to do it they were all dead, save perhaps a few that weren't pulled in by the curse. The only one that would be able to manipulate it enough to save them would be Rumplestiltskin, and she hoped to everything it had been him.

"Then it's finished and you're all going to die," Zelena continued, blue eyes wide with excitement. "We won."

Regina couldn't help to think the elder woman looked just a little off. She'd thought she was whiny and childish at first, but something had snapped in her mind at some point. She didn't know this estranged sister of hers, and she couldn't imagine a scenario in which being raised by Cora would have _helped_ her at all, but she couldn't help but wonder if somehow things had turned out differently for her that Zelena's path might have been a different one. They might have even helped each other through the terrible times in a different life, along a different path, but here she stood, staring at Regina like something was utterly wrong. Instead of the usual irritation she would have once displayed, the dark haired woman that had been angry and hurt enough to cast a curse to destroy the happiness everyone that had ever wronged her in her own mind felt pity work its way in and she took a step forward. Maybe this was it. _This_ was what Snow felt for her all those many, many years ago when she'd tried to save her. If Cora hadn't been the one to tear the scroll, it was Rumple, and Rumplestiltskin had no reason to think to help her. Regina shouldn't, she knew, but somehow trying so hard to be better must have worked its way deeper than even she had realized.

"Zelena," she said softly as she stepped forward. "If it wasn't Mother-"

"It was. She wouldn't lose. She can't lose."

"She's not-"

Anger flashed through blue eyes and Zelena snapped forward. Regina didn't have time to respond as her sister's hand went through her chest and yanked _hard_. Breath left the younger woman as the elder pulled her beating heart from her chest and inspected the dark spots. "You know _nothing_," she informed Regina. "And now you won't. We've won, and I've won. You'll never be able to get in the way of my happiness again. Mother will love only me."

"Zelena, _stop_!" Snow's voice sounded, drawing both women's attention. The dark haired princess stood in the doorway with her now string pulled taught. "I don't want to hurt you," she warned. "Give Regina her heart back _now_."

"Hurt me?" Zelena scoffed, tightening her grip on the heart and pulled a pained sound from her sister. "Mother holds your heart. All you can do, little Snow White, as I-"

Zelena wasn't able to finish her sentence or finish crushing the heart she held. Snow loosed her squid-ink coated arrow that cut through her magic and it dug deeply into her chest, sending her stumbling back and she hit the broken floor hard. The heart never quite fell from her hand, but her fingers had loosened around it by the time Regina knelt by her side and took it.

"You must hate me," Zelena rasped.

Regina made a small sound as she pushed her heart back into place and her dark eyes shifted to Zelena. Pity was certainly the right word for it. "No," she murmured after a moment as Snow inched closer behind them. "Surprisingly not."

"I was going to kill you."

A soft laugh escaped her. "Yes, well, the woman that just saved my life from you is one that I spent more years than not trying to kill or make miserable, so…" So what, she wondered. She wasn't sure, but there was something there. Some little flicker of light in all of that boundless darkness. She could never forgive her mother for what she had done, but maybe, just maybe, she could convince herself to forgive this woman that had been so badly damaged by her as well. Maybe in that they could both find some semblance of peace.

"I'm so sorry, Regina," Snow whispered from behind her. "She was going to-"

"Anything less and she would have killed me," Regina agreed. Zelena was gone and she looked back to see the anguish in her step-daughter's eyes. She rose slowly and watched her. There were more pressing matters than the emotional turmoil right now. "I can see how my spell might have slipped, but how did you save me? Mother would never allow it."

Snow looked small where she stood, as if a great weight pressed against her. "I don't know. It's just... I could. What could that mean?"

"Either that Mother wanted you to kill Zelena or... her hold has been cut." Despite everything, a small smile perked her lips. Rumple had gotten to the scroll. Zelena had been wrong and Cora had lost. "We won."

"Then it's over?"

"It's over."

* * *

It happened so quickly that Henry barely had time to make a sound. He was dragged out of his hiding spot, Cora snarling viciously about him and Wendy screaming out his name. She was knocked back as soon as she tried to jump forward, but he couldn't be sure if it had been Cora's magic, the reversing curse, or his grandfather. He'd never seen Grandpa Gold look so angry in his life.

Cora's bony fingers wrapped around the back of Henry's neck and clamped down. He squirmed briefly, magic and a firm grip immediately locking him into place.

"One move and I'll kill him, Rumple," she warned and Grandpa Gold hardly appeared to be listening. He thought he might be done for, but his grandfather was quicker than Cora.

Henry had felt Rumplestiltskin's magic before, but the power radiating off him now was different. There was something more familiar about it than any magic he'd encountered since Emma broke the curse. This was some of the very magic that had _created_ Storybrooke.

It was that magic that snatched Henry from Cora's grasp and that magic the placed him behind his grandfather. Rumplestiltskin was on Cora before she even seemed to realize that her hostage was gone. He slammed into her so hard that when she hit the wall - several steps behind her - her head bounced. His long fingers wrapped around her neck and even from his place Henry could see the panic in her eyes. Grandpa Gold leaned in, snarling directly into her ear. "You think I couldn't draw power from my own curse? Did I teach you _nothing_?" He pulled her back and slammed her into the unyielding wall again, pulling a sharp cry from her.

Henry took a step forward. "Grandpa?" he managed. He had to stop him before he did something he regretted. Surely he would regret _murdering_ Cora. Defence, yes, but murder was something else entirely.

"I don't think he can hear you, Henry," Wendy said quietly from his side, taking his hand in hers. He wasn't sure if she was afraid or if she was readying herself to stop him. Her dark eyes were entirely unreadable.

"I could have spared him," Cora bit out. "He and your boy. If you'd just-"

"Been your slave?" Rumplestiltskin demanded as he slammed her a third time, the last impact making her go a bit limp in his hands. "Been your pet on a leash? I'm not interested. I'll save my family and this time I won't sell my soul to do it. This time…"

Fear was bubbling up fast as he saw his grandfather's fallen expression, but Wendy kept him from approaching.

"You'll still be alone," Cora said quietly after a moment of silence and Rumplestiltskin stiffened. "You'll lose them no matter how hard you fight for them. Foolish, single-sighted Rumple. Love is weakness."

"Really? So tell me why I won?" he demanded and Henry couldn't draw in the breath to make a sound as magic leapt off his grandfather and Cora fell dead to the floor, body twisted at odd angles and eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.

Rumplestiltskin turned and looked at him, as if realizing for the first time that he was still there. "Oh Henry," he murmured and his grandson broke free and ran to him, wrapping his arms around his middle and hugging him as hard as he could. Careful, trembling arms returned the embrace. "I didn't mean to frighten you, lad."

Henry pulled in a shaking breath and tightened his grip, surprised in his own ability to vocalize what he was thinking. "I wasn't scared of you, Grandpa, just for you."

The elder man chuckled and lifted one hand to the top of his head, ruffling his hair affectionately. "I'm sorry, Henry. I'm so very, very sorry."

He pulled back, blinking back the tears he didn't know had gathered and found his grandpa staring back with much the same expression. He was going to tell him it was alright. In the end, he'd been protecting him and he knew that, but the words stopped in his throat. Blood trickled from Rumplestiltskin's nose and he reached up to wipe at it, trying to offer something that might have been a smile. Baelfire had told him stories of when he'd been very young and the way his papa would push through even the hardest of days and had always been willing to force a smile for him, no matter what. Henry thought that the smile his grandpa was giving him now must have been the same one he'd given to his dad when he was young and their lives were half a breath shy from falling apart around them. This wasn't about Cora. It was about something that could shatter a piece of their little family.

"I fear I may have gone back on our deal, Henry," Grandpa Gold murmured, his voice quivering very slightly.

A sob clawed at his throat as Henry latched back on. "You can't. You _promised_! You don't break deals. You don't!"

Rumplestiltskin was trembling in the boy's grasp and he hugged him tightly. "Only two in my life now. Fitting that the first stole Bae's chance to be with his family and the second will secure his chance to keep them. You too, Henry. You'll be with your family."

"You're my family too," Henry sobbed and clung to him. Through the tears he could see smoke gathering at his feet, wispy and and the same dark purple that it had been when his grandpa had brought magic to Storybrooke. If they could just stay then everything would be alright. Grandpa Gold wouldn't have to die. He sniffed and looked up. "Can't we stay?"

"I'm afraid not. It's already begun, see? Hold tight now."

Henry tightened his grip and clung to his grandfather as the smoke covered them up and whisked them away. His eyes were shut so tight that he couldn't have known that anything was changing around him, much less that the entire town that he'd spent all of his twelve years in was simply gone. When he opened them, though, Rumplestiltskin was leaning over him, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. "Not your fault," he whispered even as his knees gave out and Henry tried to find a way to hold onto him, he collapsed fully to the grassy hillside of what had to have been the Enchanted Forest.

* * *

TBC

Notes: I feel like I should duck in cover. There are still two chapters to go, and at least this one wasn't for the weekend, right?

Next Time - Chapter Forty-One: How Rare and Beautiful it is to Even Exist, in which fate is questioned.


	42. How Rare and Beautiful

**Chapter Forty-One: How Rare and Beautiful it is to Even Exist**

They were racing down the hall so fast that Bae ran straight into David. Both men saw the other at just the last moment and both tried to shift out of the way, but the way that they clipped each other sent them tumbling and Baelfire grimacing as the wound that snaked its way up his side burned and pulled open further. He leaned heavily against the wall for a moment, grimacing and taking inventory. He really didn't want to have Whale stitch him up after this. Maybe his papa would be able to put him back together with a healing spell. As he pushed himself off the wall he snorted a laugh. How times had changed.

"You okay?" David asked as he seemed to be regaining his own balance from the collision.

"Yeah, I think so."

"You don't look it." Belle was at his side then, not giving him a chance to tell her no. Her clever fingers were pulling back his tattered shirt and he flinched as it pulled against dried blood. "Bae…"

"I'm fine, really. Pop'll patch me right up. You know he will."

"After he gets done worrying about you."

"It doesn't matter what I do, he'll never stop doing that."

His father's beautiful love smiled at that. "Well, best to learn that now," she agreed, her eyes flickering past him and to the hallway. "What is that?"

"Smells like magic," Ruby said lowly and Bae saw an all-too-familiar mist whisping around the corner just ahead.

"Papa reversed the curse."

"So what now?" Emma demanded.

"We'll all be taking a trip home."

"And Henry?"

"Papa will have found a loophole." Emma shot him a look and he tried for a smile. "He won't leave Henry behind."

"What about Snow? And the others that lost their hearts to Cora?" David pressed.

Ruby took a step away from the advancing mist. "If Cora's dead she can't control them, right?"

They were all looking to him like he had the answers, and he supposed he was the closest thing they had to it without Rumplestiltskin or Regina on hand. "I think so," he said honestly. "Even if she's not dead… I don't think she'll live through the curse reversal from what Papa said. She's too closely tied to it."

David joined Ruby in taking a step back. "The others will come through too?"

"Yeah. It'll take everyone back."

"And we should just let it?" That was his Emma. Determined, ready to fight, disbelieving Emma. She had to see everything with her own two eyes before she'd let her heart accept it. She might have seen the Enchanted Forest before, but that didn't mean she was ready to go back and face fallen castles and ogres and no cell service. She was a modern woman used to all the modern amenities of the world she'd grown up in, even if that wasn't who she was meant to be. A princess. For the first time, Baelfire looked at her and realized that he - the son of a spinner from the poor side of one of the poorest sections of the Enchanted Forest - had fallen in love with a princess. She was born to the life of castles and adventure and he… That could be handled a different day. For now, he had to convince her not to make a run for the house to grab Henry and leave Storybrooke. He wouldn't lose them again.

"We don't have a choice," he murmured.

She looked up at him, as if trying to gage his sincerity on the subject - or perhaps just the extent of his understanding of it - and finally nodded. The look in her eyes was the same one that was always there when they were young and he'd convinced her to do something absolutely crazy that was sure to get them caught or worse. "I trust you," she said firmly and he wrapped his arms around her.

"If it happens like last time, the others will come through in groups. Even if you feel the urge to hold your breath… don't."

"Why?" Ruby asked.

He flashed her a grin. "You'll feel sick on the other side. Oh so sick."

The mist swirled around their feet and crawled up their legs. Emma let Bae hold onto her and he did so with everything he had. He made himself breathe through the shift of space around them. The whole town would be obliterated once the people were removed - most of them, anyway, and he hoped his father had remembered a few besides Henry - and there would be nothing left but an open road and some trees, just as it had been before Regina cast her curse all those years ago.

Bae felt the crushing weight of the transfer and Emma's arms tightened around him until they could both feel solid ground under their shoes. He looked down to find startled hazel eyes staring back up at him. "Are we dead?" she whispered.

He risked a look around, seeing the rolling hills that surrounded them. David was swaying a bit where he was, as was Ruby, both dressed in clothes much more suited for their surroundings, even if David's shirt was smeared with blood from the battle he fought nearly thirty years before. Bae's own clothing had been replaced for leathers and Emma… He pulled back, taking in the dress that a princess might have worn on any given day. She followed his gaze and grimaced. "Really? I'm kind of a short skirt kind of girl."

Baelfire grinned. "I know," he answered cheekily and she hit him. He continued to smile as he saw Mary Margaret sprinting across the grass and flinging herself into David's arms, Regina following not far behind. He let go of Emma's hand. "Go on. I'm going to find my dad and we'll find Henry before he runs off to take on the world."

Emma snorted. "I only wish you were joking," she grumbled as she turned to her parents, Mary Margaret flinging her arms around her daughter before she could even get a word out to her.

Bae chuckled, turning back to Belle, but the librarian stood staring off into the distance as if she had been surprised by something terrible. He followed her gaze in time to see his papa and Henry in the distance, but something was wrong. He could tell something was very wrong. All at once Rumplestiltskin just collapsed, falling straight to the ground with only a twelve year old to catch him. At the same time Belle dropped to her knees, her hand clutching at her heart and she looked as if she'd been dealt a heavy blow. "Belle?"

"Go," she managed, voice pained. "I'll be right behind you. Make sure he's alright."

He nodded, hesitating only for a moment before he sprinted down the hill. He was grateful only in the back of his mind that these boots seemed ready to handle the slippery grass, because if they hadn't it would have been a much quicker, much less useful trip down. "Henry!" Bae called, trying to slide to a stop at the bottom and his son looked up from his place at his grandfather's side, face streaked with tears and a sob choked him. He didn't bother to ask what he and Wendy were doing with Rumplestiltskin, but instead slid down to the ground next to them to check his father for injuries. "What happened?"

"He's gone," Henry managed brokenly. "He's gone and it's my fault. It's my fault, Dad. It's my-"

"It's not your fault. He's not gone," Bae answered quickly. He couldn't be gone. His father was immortal. He couldn't be killed. His hands were trembling as he checked for a pulse and found nothing. They went next to his nose and found no breath, and when he bent down and put his ear to Rumplestiltskin's chest his heart didn't beat. For the first time he realized that the grey-gold scales had never replaced pale skin and his father looked so very, very human lying against the damp grass. "I don't understand. We're back. We're not in the Land Without Magic. Nothing can kill him here. Nothing except…" He looked around for the dagger immediately.

Henry seemed to catch on. "She didn't kill him. It wasn't the knife."

"He can't die," Bae bit out and he brushed grey-streaked hair out of his papa's face. "You can't die. I came back to save you. You can't…" The sob stopped him and Baelfire bent over the all-too-still form and cried. He knew he needed to be strong for Henry, but in that moment he felt no older than a boy himself, frightened of losing the father who was his whole world. He'd bent and broken laws of magic, he'd traveled through time, and it was all to fix the event he knew had to be _wrong_. He'd wanted to change fate, and look where that had gotten him. A few more precious days with him, perhaps, but he'd caused so much more pain, so much more suffering before his life had finally been stolen from him. Again.

"I'm sorry, Dad," Henry sniffed and Bae finally forced himself to look up. His son mirrored his tortured expression as he clung to his grandfather's limp hand. "There was this prophecy and it said… it said that I'd be Grandpa Gold's undoing. We made this deal and I thought he'd be okay. He said he'd do everything he could to make it okay. He was just trying to save me. He said… that he didn't want to break apart our family, but…"

Bae reached across to Henry and his hand rested against his son's cheek. "It's not your fault, Henry. Don't ever think it is."

"That's what he said," the boy sniffed. "It doesn't make it any better."

"No, I guess it doesn't," Baelfire admitted softly.

"Rumple?" Belle's voice sounded behind them and Bae winced. He'd seen this brave woman lose her love twice now, and he wasn't sure he was ready to turn and face that heartbroken expression all over again.

* * *

She'd known. Somehow she'd known. Belle had felt her heart shatter in her chest the moment he'd collapsed and she had just _known_ she had been left alone in this world and every other. She had read that True Loves were of one heart and that one could feel the other's dying breath no matter where they were and it had been the case. The pain had been more than she had ever experienced and even when she'd sent Bae after him she had known what she'd find when she finally made it down that hill.

Knowing didn't help.

Belle's heart felt like it was breaking and cracking, shattering into a million pieces and coming back together just to start the process over again. He was gone. Her love, her Rumple had died without her by his side and for what? She was sure it was something more heroic than he would have ever admitted to and when she caught sight of Henry at his side she knew it had something to do with his grandson. He had a soft spot for the boy that had warmed his love's heart.

Bae didn't even want to look at her, and how could she blame him? He'd traveled through time to save his papa and he'd died. After everything fate couldn't be changed and that, she knew, was the hardest lesson of all. It was one that she wasn't sure she could learn, nor that she want to. It sent the ache through her whole body that started in her chest and reached every inch of her. Rumplestiltskin was dead, and there was no bringing him back.

"He's gone, isn't he?" she asked softly. It didn't matter that she knew, she needed to hear it, otherwise she'd hold out hope until she knelt beside him and felt that his heart didn't beat and that his breath would never come again.

"Yes," Bae managed, dragging himself around to where Henry was. The boy flung himself into his father's arms and wept openly, uncaring that Wendy stood just a few yards away looking like she wasn't quite sure what to say.

Belle had questions, but she couldn't quite find a way to make her tongue form them up. It wouldn't bend right and she was sure that if she tried to say any more that it would come out garbled and broken as she felt. Instead she fell to her knees next to him. She hadn't even been able to say goodbye. Her fingers brushed at the loose strands of hair and she pressed her cheek against his chest. He looked like her Rumple that she'd come to know again in Storybrooke, not the Dark One that she'd first met, even if the curse's reversal had put him back into his dragon skin leathers and silk shirt. It brought a very small smile to her face and somehow her great imagination played through all the whatifs and scenarios that could have been in the blink of an eye. They could have been happy here. They could have been a family.

"I love you," she whispered, voice cracking even on those few words. "I will always love you." Belle pressed a kiss to his lips and felt hot tears rolling down her cheeks as she pulled back. This was not a curse. This was death, and even True Love's Kiss could not conquer death.

That's why Belle forgot to breath even as Rumplestiltskin's dark eyes flew open and he pulled in a breath that seemed to rattle around in his chest for a moment before he remembered to release it. His body came halfway off the ground, almost as if he meant to sit up and then thought better of it. All at once his expression grew pained and he groaned, flopping back to the grass and his free hand that was not being held captive by a grandson came to his forehead.

Belle blinked and was quite sure she was losing her mind. Grief had snapped her, apparently, and she was hallucinating. While part of her was entirely okay with that if it meant that she saw Rumple again, the more practical side turned to his son who was staring just as wide-eyed as he was. "Papa?"

He held up one slim finger, indicating that he needed a moment as he squeezed his eyes closed against what looked to be the migraine from hell. After several long, agonizing moments he risked opening those deep brown eyes of his again and Belle choked on the laugh that bubbled in her throat. She all but pounced on him, lips covering his and she felt tears falling again, but these were so different than the ones from before.

It took a moment, but he wrapped his arm around her and kissed her back. They parted only when the two of them decided that breathing would be necessary if they didn't want to both be lying in the soft grass and unable to move. Another giggle fell from her lips and she finally managed to remind herself that they weren't alone. He looked up at her, confusion evident, and slowly tried to sit up.

Baelfire would have none of it and was at his side instantly, supporting him. "Easy, Papa," he warned, steadying him so that he didn't pitch all the way forward. "Easy."

"What happened?" Rumplestiltskin demanded, his voice raspy and he looked like the headache hadn't relented.

No one said anything for several long moments and he turned very slowly to look at each of them. Finally, his gaze rested on Henry who looked terribly guilty. "Hey," he greeted roughly.

"Hi."

"Told you not to worry, didn't I?"

"Yeah."

"You going to question your grandpa now?"

"Nope," Henry said, the world dissolving into a laugh as if he'd finally given himself permission to accept that his grandfather was _not_ dead. "Never again."

"Good lad." He turned back to Belle and to Bae, his gaze shifting for a moment and he leaned heavily into his son. "What happened?"

"You were dead," Bae managed, voice tight. "Belle kissed you."

"True Love's Kiss?" she asked and his lips turned down just a little.

"Death is not a curse," he echoed her earlier thoughts.

"Then what?"

"I don't know." His voice was soft, fading, and he seemed to be struggling to stay awake for them.

"Rumple?"

"I'm alright, dear. Just… exhausted."

"Rest then."

"Yeah," Bae agreed, "you know Emma's parents will need to debate what happens until the end of time anyway."

Rumplestiltskin chuckled softly and let his eyelids droop heavily closed. "'kay," he murmured. "Love you. Both." They opened again and he reached a hand out for Henry. "All of you."

"Love you too, Grandpa," Henry said and gave him a smile.

That seemed to be enough to coax him to sleep and Belle found herself watching him for a moment to make sure his chest continued to rise and fall as it should. She wasn't disappointed in it, and she looked up as Bae stood.

"You'll stay with him, won't you?"

"Of course. Where are you going?"

"To see what the hell they want to do. The Dark Castle's too far from here, but if we are where I think we are, Regina's castle isn't far. It'll give Pop time to… recover."

He didn't sound like he knew exactly what that meant and Belle pulled in a deep breath. "What does all this mean, Bae?"

"I don't know. I doubt we'll know until he's back on his feet, but for now… For now I'm just happy he's alive."

"Me too," she whispered and they shared a smile. She knew Bae had lived through even more heartache than she had when it came to his father and they shared that pain, but it was the end that mattered. It was in this moment that she knew that everything could be alright again, because as she and Henry sat by his side, Belle felt like her heart was whole again.

* * *

Rumplestiltskin had spent much of his life avoiding the thought of death. As a poor spinner in the Frontlands death had been a looming presence at every turn. If it wasn't the war - either being called to the Front or having the ogres coming to you - then it was sickness spreading throughout the village and claiming young and old alike. As the Dark One he hadn't needed to worry about death. He was immortal and had proven it time and time again. Storybrooke had been the uncertainty there. Try as he did to have everything ready for that trip, he hadn't been sure how the Land Without Magic would affect his human body beneath the curse. It hadn't been until thirty years after they arrived that he'd finally received that answer, and it hadn't been one he was overly keen on finding. The price was what it was though, and he'd made his peace with that, despite the howling protests of his own curse.

While he hadn't spent a great deal of time thinking about it, he'd expected death to be less comfortable. At least for him. Though he found himself surrounded by darkness it was more like the first stages of wakefulness than eternal sleep. He tried to move and found his limbs sluggish to obey his commands. He struggled against it and the sudden realization that he needed to open his eyes hit him.

A strange, unfamiliar room came slowly into focus and it was peculiarly silent. Almost unnervingly so. It wasn't just the fact that he was alone in it, but he was truly and completely alone. The small, dark voice that had whispered in his mind for so long was utterly silent, and as Rumplestiltskin lifted his hands slowly into his line of sight he saw pale skin instead of scales and claws. It didn't make any sense. One of the very last things he remembered was coming through and landing in the Enchanted Forest. He should look like the Dark One. Unless he _wasn't_ the Dark One anymore, which didn't make any sense if he was really, truly alive. His mind felt muddled, like he'd slept too long and too hard, but he tried to reach through the fog just to touch his magic. He could feel it. It was quiet and subdued, but it was there in a distant sort of way, though not in a way that would help him now. Now it was all him.

He pushed himself up in the bed slowly, finding more aches and pains than death should have allowed. No, he decided, he was very much alive even if he shouldn't be. He knew he'd slipped away as soon as they'd hit the Enchanted Forest. He was standing with Henry and then nothing. His mind was drawing an utter blank. Ignorance was a form of weakness and he wouldn't allow himself to be weak now. Painfully he forced his limbs into compliance and threw the bed coverings back and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

His feet were bare as they touched the ornate carpet that was rolled out under the bed and he found himself dressed in a linen shirt that was very much not his own. His attention was immediate stolen by the partially open door and he nearly toppled as he took a step towards it. They may have not left boots, but his cane was leaned against a small table with a burnt down candle on it and he struggled over to it, grasping the gold handle tightly between his fingers so that he could better move toward the opening.

Rumplestiltskin couldn't shake the fog from his mind even as he limped forward. The halls looked familiar and he was almost certain that they were in Regina's castle. How they'd gotten there he had no idea. He needed answers, and with the same intensity he needed to find his son and Belle. If he was alive then a different price had been taken and the longer he went without seeing their faces, the more fear creeped in. Henry was there, he'd seen him, so what else could it have taken as payment?

"Well you shouldn't be out of bed," a voice sniped from behind and Rumplestiltskin nearly threw himself off balance as he turned. He swayed dangerously for just a moment before he was sure the world had stopped rocking back and forth. Granny just stood there and watched, waiting as if to see if he would fall on his face or not, and didn't look particularly inclined to help him. She frowned, reaching up to adjust her glasses before motioning to his unsteady state. "And that would be why."

The former Dark One - he thought, it was too quiet so it had to be true, no matter how much the thought frightened him - glared. "Where are we?" His voice was terribly raspy, like he hadn't used it in some time.

"Snow's castle," the inn keeper answered. "And Regina's."

He swallowed hard. "How?"

"The curse reversed and sent us home. The general consensus is that you did it."

Dark eyes watched her and Rumplestiltskin wondered if the cane would be enough to keep him on his feet. He tensed when a chuckle escaped her lips and he saw her looking him up and down. Rage built as he realized that she was laughing at him. "_What_?" he demanded roughly.

"Oh nothing. Nothing at all." There was mischief in her eyes and Rumplestiltskin was quite sure she felt utterly justified in her open mocking after suffering twenty-eight years of cowering to Mr Gold. The ornery old woman had never feared him as the Dark One, but the innkeeper had had more than a few nasty run ins with her landlord. "Though I suppose for being dead you look very put together. Does Belle know you're up and around?"

Questions immediately started to battle each other to be first in line. The meaning behind the snarky comment about his death lost out to his love's name. "Where is she?"

Granny's eyes narrowed a little. "That poor girl. You really did leave without saying anything. For as long as you've been alive you'd think there'd have been some patience learned in there somewhere."

For as long as she'd been alive he would have thought she'd have some survival instincts. Her inability to answer his question was about to shorten her life expects any tremendously.

"Rumple?"

The urge to throttle Granny eased just a little at the sound of Belle's voice. He turned and saw her looking very distressed at the end of the hall, tears building in those clear blue eyes, and she took off in a full sprint towards him. She stopped just short so she wouldn't take him off his feet and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing a kiss to his lips. He thought his knees might give out in that moment, but somehow he stayed on his feet as she deepened the kiss.

Finally they broke and she looked ready to hit him. "What are you doing out of bed?"

The demand came so across so sharply after the affection that Rumplestiltskin shrank back just a little. "Looking for you," he answered and it was at least partially true. Belle, Bae, and answers. Belle would have answers, he knew. "What's happened?"

She tried for a smile and he could see his exhausted she was. "Come on. Let's get you back to bed and I'll tell you. Granny, could you let Bae know I found him?"

The innkeeper nodded as Belle took Rumplestiltskin's free hand and lead him back to the room he'd come from. He followed her as if in a dream he couldn't quite break free of and she squeezed his fingers. "It's winter out there. You shouldn't be wandering around the halls in your bare feet."

"Then you should have left a pair of boots," he groused.

"And you shouldn't have gone wandering," she answered back, her usual patience not quite there.

He started to argue again as she shut the door behind him but a floodgate opened in his mind, nearly sending him to his knees. He turned, brown eyes wide. "I was dead."

"Yes, you were," she breathed, all the pain in the worlds filling those three small words to the point of bursting. "We came through and you collapsed. You weren't breathing and your heart stopped."

His brave Belle was just barely holding it together and Rumplestiltskin moved over slowly to pull her close. He wrapped his arms around her and she leaned in, pressing her cheek against his chest.

"Then you didn't wake up after you came back," she whispered. "Bae kept telling me you were just exhausted, but even he..." She stopped, sniffing hard and he knew he'd made her cry. He hadn't meant to and it broke his heart to hear it.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," he whispered, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead. She had kissed him and he'd woken. It hadn't made sense, but it had happened. There's be time later to work through it. For now, he held her close. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault. You saved Henry and the rest of us. You defeated Cora."

He snorted softly. He knew what she was getting at and he'd have none of it. He wasn't one of those foolish hero types willing to throw it all way for any small notion. Rumplestiltskin was very particular about just who he'd give his life for, and that number was a very narrow three.

"I love you," she said instead.

"And I love you."

The door popped open without warning and Baelfire looked out of breath and a little cross. Rumplestiltskin grimaced. "Hey," he greeted.

His son grumbled something incoherently as he crossed the space between them and pulled a surprised Rumplestiltskin into a crushing hug. "We done?"

"With what?"

"The close calls."

His papa chuckled, returning the embrace. "I certainly hope so."

"How're you feeling?"

"Not bad for a dead man," he answered flippantly, receiving two glares for his efforts. He offered a smile in return. "And it would seem that there are some interesting side effects to being dead." He stretched out his hands, inspecting them again.

Bae cleared his throat. "Is it really gone then? For good?"

"Time will tell."

He could tell that his son - who had once tried so hard to find a way to get rid of the curse that he'd thought had eaten him alive - was a little disappointed in his answer, but there wasn't much more to be said. Rumplestiltskin wasn't sure if his curse had merely been shoved to the side or if somehow it had been pushed out. It shouldn't have been possible, but he shouldn't be alive either. He'd find out, but not here.

"Now what, Papa?" Bae asked quietly.

"Now?" he echoed, a soft chuckle accompanying the word. "Now I want to go home."

* * *

TBC

Notes: Okay, so this has been a wild ride. We have one chapter to go and that should go up Monday as long as everything goes well. If you've enjoyed Courage of the Stars, I'm posting the first chapter to my next story Where Nightmares and Darkness meet this morning as well. Like pretty much everything I write for this fandom it will be AU with a departure point during Snow Drifts. It will ignore S4.

Next time - Chapter Forty-one: Changing Fate, in which our story comes to a conclusion.


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